| YES | if the statement agrees with the views of the writer |
| NO | if the statement contradicts the views of the writer |
| NOT GIVEN | if it is impossible to say what the writer thinks about this |
Saving the Seahorses
B. Seahorses and their relatives, the only animal species whose males, rather than females, become pregnant, are popular with home collectors and public aquariums alike. Since the charismatic fish die easily in captivity, they must be replaced frequently from the wild. Dried seahorses are prized by practitioners of traditional Chinese medicine, in remedies for everything from asthma to impotence. As disposable income in China has risen over the last decade, so too has demand for seahorse-based cures. That has caused overfishing at Danajon Bank and throughout the fishes’ range, leading to the loss of at least 20 million wild seahorses a year. Populations have been plummeting everywhere seahorses are fished —'in sea grass beds and mangrove stands from Florida to Ecuador, and on coral reefs from India to Vietnam.
C. Last week 35 researchers and representatives of major public aquariums from around the world met at Chicago's John G. Shedd Aquarium to discuss what can be done to reverse the trend. “We’ve seen population declines of 50 per cent over the last five years, and that’s unacceptable,” says Amanda Vincent, a conservation biologist at Montreal’s McGill University and co-founder of Project Seahorse. One way to reduce aquariums’ dependence on wild stocks is to improve captive breeding techniques. Jorge Gomczjurado, a biologist at San Francisco’s Steinhart Aquarium, has spent the last year trying to raise Hippocampus ingens, the Giant Pacific seahorse. Prized as the largest of the seahorses at up to 12 inches long, H. ingens is also one of the trickiest to breed. Like all seahorses, they're fussy eaters, and in captivity they’re susceptible to disease. By experimenting with food supplements, Gomezjurado has managed to raise three successive generations.
D. Another researcher, a Ph.D. candidate at the London Institute of Zoology named Stephen Casey, has been studying the six-inch-long Tiger-Tail seahorse (H. comes), the most heavily exploited species on the Danajon Bank. Casey spent six weeks in Handumon, going out with seahorse fishers nightly to collect specimens. He paid the fishers the going rate for their catch, a few pesos each, which allowed him to sample without further depleting the population. His research will help determine whether seahorses can move from one spot on a reef to another. Adults rarely stray more than a few feet from their small home range, but juveniles might be transported to distant areas by waves or currents. If so, the progeny of an isolated pocket of reproducing adults would spread out, recolonizing distant reefs that have been depopulated by fishing.
E. The Shedd Aquarium is tackling the depopulation problem from a different angle. Together with Project Seahorse, Shedd’s merchandizing department developed a project with the Handumon villagers to lessen their dependency on seahorses. The Shedd gift shop now stocks 34 diffeient products made by Handumon fishers and their families. Straw beach mats and handbags with seahorse motifs are big sellers. Dano and his wife have gone into business making wooden diving goggles, sold at the Shedd gift shop for $7, and have earned enough to get out of debt and buy food and medicine for their six children.
F. Project Seahorse is also encouraging traditional Chinese medicine practitioners to identify alternatives to seahorses, and the researchers are helping villagers to develop sustainable fishing techniques. The villagers have established an 80-acre "no fishing” zone around Handumon. Populations of both seahorses and other species have rebounded so well that the idea is spreading to other villages, says Philippine biologist Marivic Pajaro, though the fish suffered a setback a year ago when the night watchman sneaked away to attend a fiesta and the area was poached of seahorses.
G. As the workshop concluded last week, Vincent said she was more hopeful than ever before that seahorse decline can be reversed before disaster strikes. She now hopes to get all of the "stakeholders”, including fishers, traders, medical practitioners and biologists, to meet together and work out how best to manage seahorses so that all parties — including the fish — get what they need. "Fish are seen as food, not wildlife," says London Zoo curator and Project Seahorse co-founder Heather Hall, summing up the difficulty of preserving underwater species. “We're just lucky that seahorses are about as cute as you get in the fish world." Those good looks may be what eventually saves them in the wild. The researchers hope that less popular but equally threatened species that share their watery homes may be saved in the bargain.
AI explanationShows the answer. Tap to open.
Question Focus: Writer-supported fact about location
Correct Answer: YES
Why this is correct: The writer clearly states that the Shedd Aquarium is in Chicago. Chicago is a well known city in the United States, so the writer supports this statement.
Passage Reference: Last week 35 researchers and representatives of major public aquariums from around the world met at Chicago's John G. Shedd Aquarium to discuss what can be done to reverse the trend.
Common Mistake: NOT GIVEN - Not Given trap. Some students think the country must be named, but the city already makes the location clear.
Paraphrasing: Passage: 'Chicago's John G. Shedd Aquarium' = Statement: 'located in the United States'
Tips: If the passage gives a clear place name, you can often confirm the country even if it is not written.
Key Vocabulary:
- located = situated
- representatives = people speaking for groups
Question Focus: Cause and response explained by the writer
Correct Answer: YES
Passage Reference: But as the six-month-long seahorse-fishing season begins next month, Dano will be lucky to catch a half dozen of the elusive fish in a full night's diving, enough to buy only a day's worth of rice. Dano and his wife have gone into business making wooden diving goggles, sold at the Shedd gift shop for $7, and have earned enough to get out of debt and buy food and medicine for their six children.
Why this is correct: The writer explains that Dano now catches far fewer seahorses, and then shows that his family has started a new business. This clearly supports the statement.
Common Mistake: NOT GIVEN - Causation trap. The passage does show the cause and the result, not just two separate facts.
Paraphrasing: Passage: 'catch a half dozen' and 'gone into business making wooden diving goggles' = Statement: 'fewer seahorses' and 'trying new ways to support themselves'
Tips: Look for cause words like 'but', 'so', or a problem followed by an action.
Key Vocabulary:
- elusive = hard to catch
- support themselves = earn money to live
Question Focus: Missing writer opinion about concentration
Correct Answer: NOT GIVEN
Passage Reference: Populations have been plummeting everywhere seahorses are fished -'in sea grass beds and mangrove stands from Florida to Ecuador, and on coral reefs from India to Vietnam.
Why this is correct: The writer lists many different regions around the world. However, the writer never says seahorses are concentrated in Southeast Asia, so this opinion is not given.
Common Mistake: NO - Not Given trap. The passage does not disagree, it simply does not make this claim.
Paraphrasing: Passage: 'from Florida to Ecuador' and 'from India to Vietnam' = Statement: 'concentrated in Southeast Asia'
Tips: If the writer does not clearly say it, do not guess based on geography.
Key Vocabulary:
- plummeting = falling quickly
- range = area where animals live
Question Focus: Population size not stated
Correct Answer: NOT GIVEN
Passage Reference: Prized as the largest of the seahorses at up to 12 inches long, H. ingens is also one of the trickiest to breed.
Why this is correct: The writer says H. ingens is the largest in size, not that it has the largest population. Population numbers are never mentioned.
Common Mistake: YES - Paraphrase trap. 'Largest' refers to size, not number.
Paraphrasing: Passage: 'largest of the seahorses' = Statement: 'largest population'
Tips: Always check what 'largest' refers to - size, number, or importance.
Key Vocabulary:
- prized = valued
- breed = type or species
Question Focus: Writer-supported general behaviour
Correct Answer: YES
Passage Reference: Adults rarely stray more than a few feet from their small home range, but juveniles might be transported to distant areas by waves or currents.
Why this is correct: The writer explains that adult seahorses stay in one small area. This supports the idea that seahorses generally do not migrate.
Common Mistake: NO - Partial truth trap. Juveniles may move by currents, but this is not migration by choice.
Paraphrasing: Passage: 'rarely stray more than a few feet' = Statement: 'don't migrate'
Tips: Focus on the main group discussed. Extra details do not always change the overall meaning.
Key Vocabulary:
- stray = move away
- home range = usual living area
Question Focus: Writer expresses positive evaluation
Correct Answer: NO
Passage Reference: Populations of both seahorses and other species have rebounded so well that the idea is spreading to other villages, says Philippine biologist Marivic Pajaro.
Why this is correct: The writer clearly shows that conservation efforts have been successful, so the idea that they are fruitless is directly contradicted.
Common Mistake: NOT GIVEN - Contradiction trap. The writer gives a clear opinion, and it is positive.
Paraphrasing: Passage: 'rebounded so well' = Statement: 'fruitless'
Tips: Words showing success or failure often signal the writer's opinion.
Key Vocabulary:
- rebounded = recovered
- fruitless = without results
Question Focus: Direct descriptive opinion
Correct Answer: YES
Passage Reference: Like all seahorses, they're fussy eaters, and in captivity they're susceptible to disease.
Why this is correct: The writer directly describes seahorses as fussy eaters, which means picky about food.
Common Mistake: NOT GIVEN - Synonym match missed. 'Fussy' and 'picky' mean the same.
Paraphrasing: Passage: 'fussy eaters' = Statement: 'very picky about their food'
Tips: Learn common synonyms. IELTS often tests them directly.
Key Vocabulary:
- fussy = picky
- susceptible = easily affected
Question Focus: Hopeful writer opinion
Correct Answer: YES
Passage Reference: Vincent said she was more hopeful than ever before that seahorse decline can be reversed before disaster strikes.
Why this is correct: The writer reports scientists feeling hopeful and believing the decline can be reversed, which means seahorses are expected to survive.
Common Mistake: NOT GIVEN - Opinion marker missed. 'More hopeful than ever' clearly shows belief.
Paraphrasing: Passage: 'decline can be reversed' = Statement: 'will survive'
Tips: Hope and belief words usually signal a YES answer in YNNG.
Key Vocabulary:
- reversed = turned back
- disaster = very bad result
General Tips:
- YNNG tests the WRITER'S VIEW, not just facts. Look for opinions and evaluations.
- YES means the writer supports the idea. NO means the writer argues against it. NOT GIVEN means the writer stays silent.
- Statements usually follow passage order. Use the previous answer to know where to read next.
- Watch for synonym traps like 'fussy' and 'picky'.
- Do not add your own knowledge. Use only what the writer clearly says.
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