Question

Read the following passage and answer the questions that follow:
A new study has found that the giant panda’s distinct black-and-white markings have two
functions: camouflage and communication. The scientists who earlier uncovered why zebras
have black-and-white strips, took the colouration question to giant pandas in the latest study.
“Understanding why the giant panda has such striking colouration has been a long-standing
problem in biology that has been difficult to tackle because virtually no other mammal has this
appearance, making analogies difficult,” said Tim Caro, a professor at the University of
California, Davis in the U.S. “The breakthrough in the study was treating each part of the body
as an independent area,” said Mr. Caro. This enabled the team to compare different regions of
fur across the giant panda’s body to the dark and light colouring of 195 other carnivore species
and 39 bear sub-species, to which it is related.
Then they tried to match the darkness of these regions to various ecological and behavioural
variables to determine their function. Through these comparisons, the study found that most of
the panda – its face, neck, belly, rump – is white to help it hide in snowy habitats. The arms and
legs are black, helping it to hide in shade.
The scientists suggest that this dual colouration stems from its poor diet of bamboo and inability
to digest a broader variety of plants. This means it can never store enough fat to go dormant
during the winter, as do some bears. So it has to be active year-round, travelling across long
distances and habitat types that range from snowy mountains to tropical forests. The markings
on its head, however, are not used to hide from predators, but rather to communicate. Dark ears
may help convey a sense of ferocity, a warning to predators. Their dark eye patches may help
them recognize each other or signal aggression towards panda competitors.
“This really was a Herculean effort by our team, finding and scoring thousands of images and
scoring more than 10 areas per picture from over 20 possible colours,” said Ted Stankowich, a
professor at California State University, Long Beach, in the U.S. “Sometimes it takes hundreds
of hour of hard work to answer what seems like the simplest of questions,” Mr. Standkowich
said.
1a What is so unusual about the Panda? 1
1b Why was it difficult to understand the colouration of the Panda? 1
1c How did the breakthrough happen? 2
1d Describe in detail the impact of the differential colouration of the Panda’s body. 4
1e What is the diet of the Panda? 1
1f Give a suitable title to the passage. 1
1g Find words from the passage which mean the same as the following: 10
i concealment ii equivalence iii environmental
iv two-fold v inactive vi animals who prey on others
vii violent behaviour viii fierceness ix extremely difficult effort
x easiest

Answer 1

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