The reading Passage has seven paragraphs A-I.
Which paragraph contains the following information?
Monkeys and Forests
As an east wind blast through a gap in the Cordillera de Tilaran, a rugged mountain range that splits northern Costa Rica in half, a female mantled howler monkey moves through the swaying trees of the forest canopy.
A. Ken Glander, a primatologist from Duke L University, gazes into the canopy, tracking the female’s movements. Holding a dart gun, he waits with infinite patience for the right moment to shoot. With great care, Glander aims and fires. Hit in the rump, the monkey wobbles. This howler belongs to a population that has lived for decades at Hacienda La Pacifica, a working cattle ranch in Guanacaste province. Other native primates — white-faced capuchin monkeys and spider monkeys — once were common in this area, too, but vanished after the Pan-American Highway was built nearby in the 1950s. Most of the surrounding land was clear-cut for pasture.
B. Howlers persist at La Pacifica, Glander explains, because they are leaf-eaters. They eat fruit when it’s available but, unlike capuchin and spider monkeys, do not depend on large areas of fruiting trees. “Howlers can survive anyplace you have half a dozen trees because their eating habits are so flexible,” he says. In forests, life is an arms race between trees and the myriad creatures that feed on leaves. Plants have evolved a variety of chemical defences, ranging from bad-tasting tannins, which bind with plant-produced nutrients, rendering them indigestible, to deadly poisons, such as alkaloids and cyanide.
C. All primates, including humans, have some ability to handle plant toxins. “We can detoxify a dangerous poison known as caffeine, which is deadly to a lot of animals,” Glander says. For leaf-eaters, long-term exposure to a specific plant toxin can increase their ability to defuse the poison and absorb the leaf nutrients. The leaves that grow in regenerating forests, like those at La Pacifica, are actually more howler friendly than those produced by the undisturbed, centuries-old trees that survive farther south in the Amazon Basin. In younger forests, trees put most of their limited energy into growing wood, leaves and fruit, so they produce much lower levels of the toxin than well established, old-growth trees.
D. The value of maturing forests to primates is a subject of study at Santa Rosa National Park, about 35 miles northwest of Hacienda La Pacifica. The park hosts populations not only of mantled howlers but also of white-faced capuchins and spider monkeys. Yet the forests there are young, most of them less than 50 years old. Capuchins were the first to begin using the reborn forests when the trees were as young as 14 years. Howlers, larger and heavier than capuchins, need somewhat older trees, with limbs that can support their greater body weight. A working ranch at Hacienda La Pacifica also explains their population boom in Santa Rosa. “Howlers are more resilient than capuchins and spider monkeys for several reasons, Fedigan explains. “They can live within a small home range, as long as the trees have the right food for them. Spider monkeys, on the other hand, occupy a huge home range, so they can’t make it in fragmented habitat”.
E. Howlers also reproduce faster than do other monkey species in the area. Capuchins don’t bear their first young until about seven years old, and spider monkeys do so even later, but howlers give birth for the first time at about 3.5 years of age. Also, while a female spider monkey will have a baby about once every four years, well-fed howlers can produce an infant every two years.
F. The leaves howlers eat have plenty of water, so the monkeys can survive away from open streams and water holes. This ability gives them a real advantage over capuchin and spider monkeys, which have suffered during the long, ongoing drought in Guanacaste.
G. Growing human population pressures in Central and South America have led to the persistent destruction of forests. During the 1990s, about 1.1 million acres of Central American forest were felled yearly. Alejandro Estrada, an ecologist at Estacion de Biologia Los Tuxtlas in Veracruz, Mexico, has been exploring how monkeys survive in a landscape increasingly shaped by humans. He and his colleagues recently studied the ecology of a group of mantled howler monkeys that thrive in a habitat completely altered by humans: a cacao plantation in Tabasco, Mexico. Like many varieties of coffee, cacao plants need shade to grow, so 40 years ago, the landowners planted fig, monkeypod and other tall trees to form a protective canopy over their crop. The howlers moved in about 25 years ago after nearby forests were cut. This strange habitat, a hodgepodge of cultivated native and exotic plants, seems to support about as many monkeys as would a same-sized patch of wild forest. The howlers eat the leaves and fruit of the shade trees, leaving the valuable cacao pods alone, so the farmers tolerate them.
H. Estrada believes the monkeys bring underappreciated benefits to such farms, dispersing the seeds of fig and other shade trees and fertilising the soil with faeces. He points out that howler monkeys live in shade coffee and cacao plantations in Nicaragua and Costa Rica as well as in Mexico. Spider monkeys also forage in such plantations, though they need nearby areas of forest to survive in the long term. He hopes that farmers will begin to see the advantages of associating with wild monkeys, which includes potential ecotourism projects.
I. “Conservation is usually viewed as a conflict between agricultural practices and the need to preserve nature,” Estrada says. “We’re moving away from that vision and beginning to consider ways in which agricultural activities may become a tool for the conservation of primates in human-modified landscapes.”
| A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H | I | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | A reference of reduction in Forest inhabitant. | |||||||||
| 2 | Only one species of monkey survived while the other two species vanished. | |||||||||
| 3 | A reason for Howler Monkey of choosing new leaves. | |||||||||
| 4 | Mention to Howler Monkey’s nutrient and eating habits. | |||||||||
| 5 | A reference of asking farmers’ changing attitude toward wildlife. | |||||||||
| 6 | The advantage for Howler Monkey’s flexibility living in a segmented habitat. |
AI explanationShows the answer. Tap to open.
Question Focus: Synonym match - 'reduction in forest inhabitant' refers to destruction of forests affecting wildlife
Why this is correct: Paragraph G clearly talks about forests being destroyed because of human population pressure. When forests are destroyed, forest inhabitants are reduced, which directly matches the idea of reduction in forest inhabitants.
Passage Reference: G. Growing human population pressures in Central and South America have led to the persistent destruction of forests. During the 1990s, about 1.1 million acres of Central American forest were felled yearly.
Common Mistake: Students sometimes choose Paragraph A because animals disappeared there, but that paragraph focuses on one local area and specific species. This is a Context shift trap because the question is about overall forest reduction, not one ranch.
Paraphrasing: Passage: 'persistent destruction of forests' = Statement: 'reduction in Forest inhabitant'
Tips: Look for numbers or statistics. They often signal reduction or decline.
Key Vocabulary:
- persistent = continuing for a long time
- felled = cut down
Question Focus: Exact detail match - survival of howlers while other species disappeared
Passage Reference: This howler belongs to a population that has lived for decades at Hacienda La Pacifica, a working cattle ranch in Guanacaste province. Other native primates - white-faced capuchin monkeys and spider monkeys - once were common in this area, too, but vanished after the Pan-American Highway was built nearby in the 1950s. Most of the surrounding land was clear-cut for pasture.
Why this is correct: Paragraph A says howler monkeys remained, but white-faced capuchin monkeys and spider monkeys vanished. This exactly matches the statement that only one species survived while the other two disappeared.
Common Mistake: Some students choose Paragraph D because it mentions several species together. This is a Partial truth trap because D talks about populations, not species vanishing.
Paraphrasing: Passage: 'howlers persist... other native primates... vanished' = Statement: 'Only one species survived while the other two vanished'
Tips: Pay attention to contrast words like 'but' or 'while'. They often show survival versus loss.
Key Vocabulary:
- persist = continue to exist
- vanished = disappeared
Question Focus: Causation link - why new leaves are better for howlers
Passage Reference: . The leaves that grow in regenerating forests, like those at La Pacifica, are actually more howler friendly than those produced by the undisturbed, centuries-old trees that survive farther south in the Amazon Basin. In younger forests, trees put most of their limited energy into growing wood, leaves and fruit, so they produce much lower levels of the toxin than well established, old-growth trees.
Why this is correct: Paragraph C explains that leaves in younger forests have lower toxin levels, which makes them easier for howlers to eat. This directly explains why howler monkeys choose new leaves.
Common Mistake: Students sometimes pick Paragraph B because it talks about eating habits. This is a Wrong section trap because B explains diet type, not reasons for choosing young leaves.
Paraphrasing: Passage: 'lower levels of the toxin' = Statement: 'a reason for choosing new leaves'
Tips: For 'reason' questions, look for cause words like 'because', 'so', or explanations.
Key Vocabulary:
- toxin = poison
- regenerating = growing again
Question Focus: Direct topic match - diet and nutrients
Passage Reference: Howlers persist at La Pacifica, Glander explains, because they are leaf-eaters. They eat fruit when it's available but, unlike capuchin and spider monkeys, do not depend on large areas of fruiting trees. 'Howlers can survive anyplace you have half a dozen trees because their eating habits are so flexible,' he says. In forests, life is an arms race between trees and the myriad creatures that feed on leaves. Plants have evolved a variety of chemical defences, ranging from bad-tasting tannins, which bind with plant-produced nutrients, rendering them indigestible, to deadly poison
Why this is correct: Paragraph B focuses on what howlers eat and how flexible their diet is. It clearly describes their eating habits and how they handle plant nutrients and toxins.
Common Mistake: Some students choose Paragraph F because it mentions water in leaves. This is a Context shift trap because F is about water advantage, not overall eating habits.
Paraphrasing: Passage: 'leaf-eaters... eating habits are so flexible' = Statement: 'nutrient and eating habits'
Tips: When a statement mentions habits, look for repeated actions or diet descriptions.
Key Vocabulary:
- flexible = able to adapt easily
- detoxify = remove poison
Question Focus: Attitude shift - conflict to cooperation
Passage Reference: . 'Conservation is usually viewed as a conflict between agricultural practices and the need to preserve nature,' Estrada says. 'We're moving away from that vision and beginning to consider ways in which agricultural activities may become a tool for the conservation of primates in human-modified landsca
Why this is correct: Paragraph I directly talks about changing how farmers and conservationists think. It shows a shift from conflict to cooperation with wildlife.
Common Mistake: Paragraph H is often chosen because it mentions benefits to farms. This is a Partial truth trap because H gives examples, but I focuses on attitude change.
Paraphrasing: Passage: 'moving away from that vision' = Statement: 'changing attitude toward wildlife'
Tips: For attitude questions, look for opinion words and quoted speech.
Key Vocabulary:
- conflict = disagreement
- conservation = protection of nature
Question Focus: Explanation of survival advantage in fragmented habitats
Passage Reference: 'Howlers are more resilient than capuchins and spider monkeys for several reasons, Fedigan explains. 'They can live within a small home range, as long as the trees have the right food for them. Spider monkeys, on the other hand, occupy a huge home range, so they can't make it in fragmented habitat'.
Why this is correct: Paragraph D explains that howlers can live in a small home range, which helps them survive in fragmented or segmented habitats. This is the exact advantage described in the statement.
Common Mistake: Students sometimes choose Paragraph B because it mentions flexibility. This is a Paraphrase trap because B talks about diet flexibility, not living space.
Paraphrasing: Passage: 'small home range' = Statement: 'flexibility living in a segmented habitat'
Tips: Match the type of flexibility. Diet flexibility and habitat flexibility are different.
Key Vocabulary:
- resilient = able to survive difficulty
- fragmented = broken into parts
General Tips:
- Matching Features questions can jump around the passage. Do not assume paragraph order.
- Scan for clear topic signals like numbers, quotes, or strong opinions.
- Read the statement first and decide what type of information it asks for - reason, example, attitude, or description.
- Use paragraph focus. Each paragraph usually has one main idea.
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