by Jerri Graham
As Harry Potter's beloved pet, Hedwig, a Snowy owl, is probably the most famous bird in the world. Snowy owls are just one of the more than 200 species of owls. Owls _(1)_ size and can be as little as the 31-gram Elf owl and as large as the Blakiston's Fish Owl, which can weigh almost five kilograms. Owls are actually very different from other birds.
Owls are nocturnal animals, which means that they sleep during the day and hunt at night. They are known both for their unique call, or hoot, and their extremely good sight. They use these features to navigate and hunt in the dark. They are far-sighted and use this vision to track and target their prey _(2)_ a distance.
_(3)_ pigeons and sparrows can exist on seeds and grains, this would not satisfy most owls. Instead, they prefer to eat small mammals such as moles, mice, and rabbits. _(4)_ these warm-blooded creatures, they will also feed on insects and other birds when hunger strikes. Like other birds of prey, owls have sharp beaks and claws that they use to tear their food to pieces before eating it.
Sometimes they do swallow larger chunks of bone, feathers, and other things that are indigestible. What their bodies don't digest is thrown up _(5)_ owl pellets. These lumps of bone and other bits are collected because they are _(6)_ for studying the habits and diet of owls.
Owls serve man by _(7)_ some of the pests that would make life unbearable. Protecting their habitat is, in a sense, a way of protecting our own.
1. (A) vary in (B) range from (C) cover up (D) yield to
2. (A) upon (B) beyond (C) from (D) among
3. (A) Since (B) Whether (C) Unless (D) While
4. (A) Except for (B) In addition to (C) Rather than (D) In spite of
5. (A) in the form of (B) for the sake of (C) at the sight of (D) on the verge of
6. (A) costless (B) invalid (C) worthless (D) invaluable
7. (A) promoting (B) eliminating (C) attracting (D) neglecting
標準答案: 1. (A) 2. (C) 3. (D) 4. (B) 5. (A) 6. (D) 7. (B)
| 精解字詞片語 | |
1. be different from... 與……不同
= differ from...
例: You need to pay more attention in biology if you don't know how a spider is different from an insect.
（如果你不知道蜘蛛與昆蟲有何不同的話，上生物課時就該好好注意聽講。）
2. track vt. 追蹤
例: The hunter tracked the deer for miles before firing a shot.
（獵人追蹤那隻鹿追了好幾哩後才開槍。）
3. satisfy vt. 使滿足；使滿意
be satisfied with... 對……滿足；滿意……
例: The mother was satisfied with her son's performance in school.
（那位母親很滿意她兒子在學校的表現。）
4. prefer to V 偏好做∕較喜歡……
例: I like to take showers in summer, but prefer to take baths in winter.
（夏天時我喜歡淋浴，而冬天則較喜歡泡澡。）
5. feed on... （動物）以……為食
live on... （人）靠……生存
例: Sharks feed on seals, smaller fish, and even whales.
（鯊魚以海豹、小魚，甚至是鯨魚為食。）
例: Without food, human beings can live on water for three or four days.
（沒有食物，人類光喝水還能活三到四天。）
6. throw up... 嘔吐∕吐出……
= vomit vt.
例: Mary threw up her lunch after riding the roller coaster.
（坐完雲霄飛車後，瑪莉把午餐全都吐了出來。）
7. in a sense 就某種意義來說
例: He writes stories all the time, so in a sense, he's an author.
（他總是在寫故事，因此就某種意義來說，他可以算是作家。）
| 單字小舖 | |
1. beloved a. 心愛的
2. species n. 物種（單複數同形）
3. nocturnal a. 夜行性的
4. hoot n. 貓頭鷹的叫聲
5. extremely adv. 極度地
6. navigate vi. 指引方向；導航
7. far-sighted a. 遠視的
near-sighted a. 近視的
8. vision n. 視力
9. prey n. 獵物
bird of prey 食肉猛禽
10. grain n. 穀類
11. mammal n. 哺乳類動物
12. mole n. 鼴鼠
13. strike vi. 來襲 & vt. 侵襲
14. beak n. 鳥嘴，喙
15. claw n. 爪
16. chunk n. 大塊
17. indigestible a. 不能消化的
18. digest vt. 消化（食物）
19. pellet n. 小球，丸
20. lump n. 團，塊
21. pest n. 害蟲
22. unbearable a. 無法忍受的
23. habitat n.（動物的）棲息地
| 中文翻譯 | |
哈利波特心愛的寵物『嘿美』是一隻雪鴞，牠大概是全世界最有名的鳥了。雪鴞只是 200 多種貓頭鷹的其中一種。貓頭鷹的體型各異，有嬌小如 31 公克的姬鴞，也有重達 5 公斤的島梟。事實上，貓頭鷹與其他鳥類非常不同。
貓頭鷹是夜行性動物，白天睡覺夜間獵食。貓頭鷹以獨特的叫聲和絕佳的視力聞名，牠們利用這些特性來引導方向和在夜間獵食。牠們有遠視，並利用這樣的視力追蹤及鎖定遠處的獵物。
雖然鴿子和麻雀光靠種子和榖類就能生存，但這可滿足不了貓頭鷹。相反地，牠們偏好捕食小型哺乳類動物，如鼴鼠、老鼠和兔子。除了這些恆溫生物之外，牠們飢 餓時也會抓昆蟲和其他鳥類來吃。如同其他猛禽，貓頭鷹的喙和爪子都很鋒利，能在食用獵物前將之撕成碎片。有時牠們會吞下一整塊大骨頭、羽毛或其他無法消化 的東西。牠們身體無法消化的東西會以『食繭』的形式吐出來。這些骨頭和其他小東西形成的團狀物被人們收集起來，因為這對研究貓頭鷹的習性和飲食是很有價值 的資料。
貓頭鷹為人類消除某些可能危及生活的害蟲。就某方面來說，保護貓頭鷹的棲息地也是人類保護自己的方式之一。
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