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Comprehension Passages

The document discusses the role of black vultures as carrion feeders and their impact on waste management in human environments, particularly in Brazil. Despite being seen as harbingers of death and a collision threat to aircraft, they efficiently manage waste by consuming large amounts of trash and harmful pathogens. Their growing populations in both South and North America highlight the ongoing conflict with humans, yet they are considered beneficial for their ecological contributions.

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71 views4 pages

Comprehension Passages

The document discusses the role of black vultures as carrion feeders and their impact on waste management in human environments, particularly in Brazil. Despite being seen as harbingers of death and a collision threat to aircraft, they efficiently manage waste by consuming large amounts of trash and harmful pathogens. Their growing populations in both South and North America highlight the ongoing conflict with humans, yet they are considered beneficial for their ecological contributions.

Uploaded by

monikarajivkatare169
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Q1.

Read the following text and answer the questions that follow: (10 M)
1.A black vulture (Coragyps atratus) is a carrion feeder that pilots and air traffic specialists have long
considered a collision threat, given both its size and flight behaviour. Of Brazil’s animal-aircraft
incidents in 2020, eight percent involved black vultures. Even discounting the danger, they pose to
aircrafts, vultures are widely seen as harbingers of death and decay. Yet, they play an important role
in the human- built environment.
2.These carrion-eaters fly in committees and when they are not airborne, camp out on large stands of
refuse, packed together like feather-clad beggars. With their sooty plumage and crusty skin, black
vultures fit right in with their rank surroundings. Boasting a wingspan of around five feet and the ability
to fly at speeds surpassing Usain Bolt in his prime, they are mostly habituated to the many collectors,
sifters, and other (bipedal) scavengers who spend quality time at the dump. Gazing, waiting-they will
make their move when the time is right.
3.A trash mound is essentially a rookery and nursery for a bird that evolved to eat the flesh of the
dead and dying but now thrives on the abundance of trash. Here, where human-coordinated
management is absent, vultures are efficient managers of waste.
4.For each story of a potential airline collision resulting from the birds, they cycle millions of tons of
nutrients and other material through the food web, eating dog faeces and fish bones with equal gusto.
The average Brazilian household throws away 353g of trash per day; the average black vulture
consumes 140g a day. Not all household waste is edible-although Coragyps atratus does seem to
have an affection for gobbling up shreds of plastic grocery bags. Their powerful stomach acid breaks
down harmful pathogens of cholera, brucellosis, and anthrax too.
5. As the planet seems to be roiled in flames and losing biodiversity at a rapid clip, vultures are as
opportunistic as ever, with their populations growing in both South and North America which makes
continued conflict with humans inevitable.
6. Solid waste is typically strewn about communities in rural Latin America. The vultures have taken
care of everything; the city has no hope of taking care of itself.” In this light, the vultures’ general
unsightliness, and perhaps the occasional aircraft collision, is a small price to pay. “They’re the best
thing that ever happened to the Amazon town,” says a conservationist.
Answer the following questions, based on the passage above.
Q1. Why does the writer say that vultures are harbingers of death and decay? 1
(A)They collide with aircrafts and feed on dead flesh.
(B)They are responsible for animal-aircraft incidents everywhere in the world.
(C)They are carrion feeders.
(D)They are responsible for animal-aircraft incidents in Brazil.
Q2. Based on your reading of the text, explain why the writer says that Coragyps atratus thrives on
the abundance of human-made piles of trash. Rationalise your response in about 40 words.
2
Q3. Which outstanding trait of the black vultures the writer wishes to project, with reference to the
following statement? 1
Not all household waste is edible-although ‘Coragyps atratus’ does seem to have an affection for
gobbling up shreds of plastic grocery bags.
Q4. The passage includes some word pairs that denote consecutive stages in a process for example,
moulding and baking a bread. From the sets (a)-(e) below, identify two sets of words that do not
correspond to this relation. 1
(A)South and North America (B) dead and dying
(C) rookery and nursery (D)death and decay (E)pilots and air traffic specialists
Q5. Complete the sentence appropriately. 1
The writer compares the black vultures with Usain Bolt because_________________.
Q6. Based on the reading of the passage, examine, in about 40 words, that the black vultures despite
their general unsightliness are highly social birds. 2
Q7. “They’re (the black vultures) the best thing that ever happened to the Amazon town,” says a
conservationist in Paragraph 6. The options given below provide enough evidence to substantiate this
claim except one. Choose the correct option. 1
(A)They take care of waste management better than humans.
(B)They consume even plastics.
(C)They protect humans from the spread of harmful pathogens.
(D)They single-handedly keep rural Latin America spick and span.
Q8. Complete the statement.
1
Despite the fact that the growing populations of black vultures in both South and North America have
sharpened the conflict with humans, they are a blessing for mankind because they consume even
non- edible waste like_____________.

II. GRMMAR

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