Read the following passage carefully and answer the questions on it.
Among the giraffes, zebra! and gazelles that roam the vast African savanna, perhaps remarkable creature is the Ostrich. Standing about 2.5 metres tall and weighing up to 155 kilograms, the ostrich is the largest bird in existence. No one can fail to be awed and fascinated by the bird’s great height, powerful legs and beautiful fluffy feathers.
Like the camel, the ostrich is tolerant of high temperatures and thrives in desert country. It also has long luxuriant eyelashes which protect its large eyes from the dust of the bushveld. Its legs are long and sinewy and its feet are strong creeps or crawls. It also dines on insects, snakes, rodents, roots and most vegetation. Because of its great size it cannot fly. However, its muscular legs are powerful enough to make it one of the fastest creatures on earth. Running across desert country, it can attain speeds of up to 65 kilometres an hour! This extraordinary swiftness and its long-distance stamina enable it to outrun many of the fastest four-legged predators with ease.
The eggs of the ostrich are the largest in the world and can weigh up to 1.5 kilograms each. Prized for its size and delicious taste, each egg is the equivalent of 25 hens’ eggs. The shell is hard and glossy and has a glazed porcelain-like finish. The empty shell is sometimes used as a container by bushmen for storing water.
In the 14th century, ostrich feathers became highly valued by fashion conscious Europeans, Yet hunting the ostrich was not easy, since the birth has very keen eyesight and swiftly flees from danger. Consequently, the ostrich was in no danger of extinction at that time.
But in the 19th century, armed with modern weapons, hunters slaughtered ostriches by the millions, and today the noble ostrich has become an endangered species.
(a) Give three reasons why the ostrich egg is considered valuable.
(b) How does the ostrich survive attack by predators ?
(c) What common characteristic of birds does the ostrich lack?
(d) Why did the Europeans value ostrich feathers?
(e) The eggs of the ostrich….” (i) What is the grammatical name given to this expression? (ii) What is its function as it used in the sentence?
(f) What is the writer’s attitude to the ostrich?
(g) For each of the following words, find another word or phrase that means the same and can replace it as it is used in the passage: (i) vast; (ii) remarkable; (iii) fascinated: (iv) thrives; (v) outrun; (vi) extinction
Explanation
(a)(i) Ostrich egg is considered valuable because it is delicious. (ii) Its shell can be used for water container.
(iii) Ostrich egg is very big. It is as big as 25 hens' eggs put together.
(b) Ostrich survive predators' attack by out running
them.
(c) The ostrich cannot fly like other birds.
(d) The Europeans use ostrich feathers for fashion.
(e)(i) The expression "The eggs of the ostrich..." is a Noun phrase (ii) It is the subject of the verb "are"
(f) The writer's attitude to the ostrich is
that of admiration
(g)(i) Vast - large, extensive, wide, (ii) remarkable - striking, notable, extraordinary, outstanding
(iii) fascinated - attracted, impressed, captivated, excited. (iv) thrives - survives, prospers, does well
(v) outrun - flee from, run faster than, beat (vi) extinction - being wiped out, being destroyed, extermination, going out of existence.