Migration

Reading
1 Read this passage from a n Ame rica n ma ga zine a bout the migra tion
ha bits of the Mona rch butte rfly. Time yours e lf as you re a d.

0 a bout 500 words

The migration of the Monarch butterfly

It's fall in North America, and millions of Monarch butterflies are migrating
to warmer climates for the winter, heading either to the Californian coast
or to certain mountains in Mexico. These butterflies recognize the arrival
of fall in the same way that we do: they feel the chill in the air. While we
adapt by putting on a sweater, the situation is much more serious for the
Monarchs. Temperatures below 55°F make it impossible for them to take to
the air; temperatures below 40°F paralyze them. The Monarchs originated
in the tropics and can't live for long at temperatures below freezing.
At the same time that the air is cooling, the nectar supply in flowers that
10 feeds the butterflies is dwindling. To survive, they begin migrating in late
summer, flying with the wind to reach their winter homes.
Up to 100 million Monarch butterflies migrate either to California or to
Mexico each year. This isn't the entire population because some never
make the migration. There are more than 25 winter roosting sites along the
15 Californian coast and about a dozen known sites in the Sierra Madre
Oriental mountains of Mexico. In both regions, butterflies depend upon
trees for their survival. They cluster in pine and eucalyptus trees along the
California coast and in ovamel trees in Mexico.
Wintering Monarchs stay together. The end result looks like massive
■ 20 clumps of feathery orange-and-black grapes. Each butterfly hangs with its
wings over the butterfly beneath it, creating a shingle effect that buffers
them from the rain and creates warmth. The weight of the cluster also
prevents the butterflies from being blown away.
Butterflies stay in their winter homes until about March, when they
25 begin the return journey to their summer homes, travelling as fast as
30mph at times.
Monarch butterflies are in danger of losing both their summer and
winter habitats. Summer habitats are being destroyed as more roads and
new housing developments and business complexes encroach upon open
30 space in North America (a phenomenon known as urban sprawl).
As land is developed, the milkweed plant is killed. This is disastrous for
the Monarch species, because once the butterfly larvae hatch from their
eggs, they feed on this plant alone. Milkweed plants are also vulnerable to
herbicides used by farmers, homeowners, landscapers, and gardeners.
35 The butterflies don't have it easy in Mexico, either. The ovamel trees
that they winter in also serve as a lumber source for local communities and
big logging companies. Logging not only removes the trees, it opens up
the forest canopy as well, and in creating these overhead holes, the
butterflies are potentially exposed to the life-threatening elements.
40 Each wintering site in Mexico contains millions of butterflies, and so
damage to even one site could be a catastrophe for the Monarch butterfly
population. Recent findings report that 44% of the ovamel forest has
already been damaged or destroyed by logging.

UNIT 17
2 Do the following s ta te me nts a gre e with the informa tion in the passage? TF2
For s ta te me nts 1-10, choos e
TR UE if the s tate m e nt agrees with the inform ation
FALS E if the s tate m e nt contradicts the inform ation
NOT GIVEN if there is no inform ation about this in the passage
1 The Mona rch butte rfly’s a bility to fly is a ffe cte d by cool a tmos phe ric conditions .
2 The Mona rch’s migra tory tra ck cha nge s a ccording to wind dire ction.
3 More Mona rch butte rflie s migra te to Ca lifornia tha n to Me xico.
4 Monarchs tha t s pe nd the winte r in Ca lifornia fa vour one type of tree.
5 One re as on why Monarchs colle ct in groups is to prote ct the ms e lve s from the wind.
6 Because of clima te cha nge , Mona rch butte rflie s now s pe nd less time a t winte r
loca tions tha n they us e d to.
7 The Mona rch ca n fly a t a speed of more tha n 30 mile s pe r hour.
8 Cons truction work is putting the Mona rch a t ris k.
9 Mona rch la rva e de pe nd on a s ingle s ource of food.
10 Ma n-ma de a djus tme nts to the Me xica n ha bita t have le d to highe r morta lity rates.

Vocabulary
3 Read the de finitions a nd write the nouns in this word puzzle . The y a ll come from the
te xts in this unit. The firs t le tte r for each one is give n. Wha t is the ve rtica l word? Which
othe r word in the puzzle doe s it re la te to?
1 A ca lcula tion of the dis ta nce of a pla ce from the 1 L
e qua tor
2 S ome thing tha t is obs e rve d to ha ppe n or e xis t 2 P
3 The dire ction tha t s ome one or s ome thing is
3 0
fa cing
4 Move me nt from one pla ce to a nothe r 4 M
5 A pie ce of ground tha t is used for a pa rticula r 5 S
purpos e
6 Anothe r word for ‘pa th’ 6 T
7 A s ma ll a lte ra tion or corre ction to s ome thing
7 A
8 A vis ible fe a ture which provide s informa tion
a bout your loca tion 8 L
9 Une xpe cted odditie s
(plura l form re quire d) 9 A

Writing
4 Re a d pa rt of a n essay on the Iris h P otato Fa mine be low. Improve its a ca de mic s tyle by
re writing it to include re la tive cla us e s a nd longe r, more comple x se ntence s.

The population of Ireland reached about 8.5 million by
1845. It had increased dramatically in the first half of
the 19th century. Irish peasants depended on the potato
as their single food crop. They favoured a variety called
'Aran Banneri. This potato was susceptible to a disease
known as 'potato blight'. The disease had spread from
North America to Europe.
The Irish Potato Famine took hold in the winter of
1845-46. It was caused by a total crop failure. Irish towns
and dries became ridden with diseases such as typhoid and
cholera. Hundreds of thousands of starving people went for
relief to the towns and cities. In 1848, there was a further
outbreak of cholera. In 1848, the potato crop failed once
again. Over 1.5 million people left Ireland in the late
1840s. They emigrated to Britain or North America.

S ta rt like this .
The population of Ire land, which re ache d about 8.5 m illion by 1845, had incre as e d
dramatically in the firs t half of the 19th ce ntury.

MIGRATION