32 The animal kingdom

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D Describing animals and birds

mammal: animal that gives birth to live babies, not eggs, and feeds them on its own milk (e.g. cat, cow, kangaroo); a kangaroo is a special kind of mammal called a marsupial [its

young grow in a pouch in front of the mother] rodent: e.g. mouse, rat reptile: e.g. snake, lizard carnivore: animal that eats a diet that is mainly or exclusively meat (e.g. lion, tiger, hyena) herbivore: animal that eats a diet that is mainly or exclusively grass/vegetation (e.g. deer, cow) predator: animal that hunts/eats other animals (e.g. eagle, lion, shark) scavenger: animal that feeds on dead animals which it has not killed itself warm/cold-blooded: warm-blooded animals (e.g. mammals) have temperatures that stay the same; cold-blooded animals (e.g. reptiles) have to control their temperature by taking in heat from outside or by being very active

Describing typical animal behaviour

Our old cat is a very docile creature. [behaves very gently]

These birds are so tame, they will sit on your hand. [not afraid of humans, usually because of training or long involvement with humans] Dogs and horses became domesticated thousands of years ago. [live with or are used by humans] There are wild cats in the mountains. [opposite of domesticated] A savage wolf killed three of the farmer’s sheep. [extremely violent or wild] A fierce dog guarded the gates. [behaves aggressively]

Life of animals and birds

As more buildings and roads are constructed, the natural habitat for many species is shrinking.

[preferred natural place for living and breeding] The arctic tern is a bird which migrates from the Arctic to the Antarctic, a round trip of over 70,000 km. Migration is when animals travel long distances to get to a different habitat. The dodo was a large flightless bird which was found on one island in the Indian Ocean but became extinct in the 17th century. [died out] You can see lots of animals in the big game reserves / game parks in Africa. [areas of land where

animals are protected from hunting, etc.; game can be used to mean animals or birds that are hunted] There is a bird sanctuary near here. [protected natural area where birds can live and breed] We went to the local animal (rescue) shelter to see if we could get a dog there. [place where stray

cats, dogs, etc., i.e. pets that have lost their home, are given food and a place to live]

Language help

A dodo is now used to mean someone or something out of touch or obsolete.

Human exploitation of animals and birds

Many people are opposed to blood sports such as foxhunting and bullfighting. [sports whose purpose

is to kill or injure animals] Some people refuse to wear clothing made of natural animal fur, since they are opposed to the fur

trade. [the selling of animal furs for coats, jackets, etc.] Poachers kill hundreds of elephants every year to supply the ivory trade. [people who hunt animals

illegally] [the buying and selling of ivory from elephants’ tusks] Animal rights activists often demonstrate outside research laboratories where animals are used in

experiments. [people who actively campaign for the protection and rights of animals] Rhinos are hunted for their horn, which is said to have healing powers. [hard, pointed, often curved part

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Rewrite the underlined phrases in these sentences using words from the opposite page.

1 There are a lot of different types of squirrels, rats, mice and things like that living in the woods. 2 A whale isn’t a fish, as it doesn’t lay eggs. It’s actually an animal that gives birth directly. 3 There are some interesting turtles and crocodiles and that sort of thing near the river. 4 Everyone thinks these animals eat meat, but in fact they only feed on certain kinds of leaves. 5 The mother bird protects her eggs from animals that attack them. 6 Many different species have died out because their habitat has been destroyed.

Fill the gaps in these sentences using adjectives from B on the opposite page to describe gentle or aggressive behaviour, or the relationship between animals and humans.

1 Sheep are generally rather animals, but the other day a ram attacked our dog. 2 Lions can look very with their huge teeth and large heads. 3 Horses were probably first many thousands of years ago. 4 Some dolphins are very and will swim along with human beings. 5 I don’t think birds should ever be hunted. They should be left in peace in their natural surroundings.

Here are the beginnings of some words related to animals and birds. Can you fill in the missing letters? You are given a clue as to the meaning.

1 h (natural home) 2 s (protected place) 3 r (protected area, often for big game) 4 s (creature that eats flesh of, e.g., birds killed by other animals) 5 s (pet that has wandered away from home) 6 m (animal that carries its young in a pouch until the young are fully developed) 7 m (travelling a long way to live somewhere else for a while) 8 d (an extinct bird or an out-of-touch person or idea)

Answer these questions.

1 What do we call sports that deliberately injure or kill animals for pleasure? 2 What name is given to the activity of buying and selling elephants’ tusks? 3 What do we call people who illegally hunt or catch animals or fish? 4 What arguments would animal rights activists have against the fur trade? 5 What is the most valuable part of the rhino and the reason why it is hunted? 6 Where might you go to get a pet if you want to give a home to one that no longer has one? 7 Where might you go in Africa to see wild animals? 8 What do you call creatures like mammals that always have approximately the same temperature? 9 What is used to describe creatures like reptiles and is the opposite of the answer to 8?

Complete the following table. Do not fill the shaded boxes. Use a dictionary if necessary. In the noun and adjective columns, mark which part of the word is stressed.

noun verb adjective carnivore herbivore predator poacher migration domestication