Name:________________________________ Date: __________________

Read and Respond

“Tracking Monsters”
Please circle the answer that best fits the question.

1. What did Brian Park warn one of the volunteers not to do?
a) Brian Park warned one of the volunteers not to take a photograph of the Gila
monster he found.
b) He warned one of the volunteers not to put her fingers near the rock Gila
monster #291 was sleeping underneath.
c) Brian Park warned one of the volunteers not to touch the prickly pear or
fishhook cacti.

2. How did Brian Park find Gila monster #291?

a) Brian Park found Gila monster #291 using radio telemetry instruments.
b) Brian Park found Gila monster #291 by following the sound of a hawk’s call.
c) Brian Park didn’t find Gila monster #291; a middle-aged volunteer did.

3. Why is Kevin Bonine’s team tracking Gila monsters?

a) His team is tracking Gila monsters because they want to know how many Gila
monsters live in the area.
b) His team is tracking Gila monsters because they want to be able to warn
members of the public of their whereabouts.
c) His team is tracking Gila monsters because they want to learn more about
their travel patterns.

4. What do Brian Park and Kevin Bonine encourage members of the public to
do?
a) They encourage members of the public to stay away from Saguaro National
Park.
b) They encourage members of the public to take photographs of any Gila
monsters they encounter in Saguaro National Park.
c) They encourage members of the public to catch Gila monsters and bring them
to the visitor centers in Saguaro National Park.

5. Why do researchers give a Gila monster a plastic stick to chew on?

a) They give a Gila monster a plastic stick to chew on because this is how they
collect its DNA.
b) They give a Gila monster a plastic stick to chew on because this helps keep it
calm while they measure it.
c) They give a Gila monster a plastic stick to chew on because this is how they
collect its venom.
Please read each statement carefully. Write T if you think the
statement is TRUE. Write F if you think the statement is FALSE.

1. ______ A bite from a Gila monster is deadly to humans.

2. ______ The Gila monster, beaded lizard, and T-Rex are the only “monster lizard”
species left on Earth.
3. ______ Gila monsters are active at night for much of the year.
4. ______ Gila monsters store fat in their tails.
5. ______ No two Gila monsters have the same patterns of color.

Please answer the questions in complete sentences.

1. What is Brian Park doing in Saguaro National Park?

______________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________

2. Why is there so little known about Gila monsters?

______________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________

3. What should you do if you encounter a Gila monster? Why?

______________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________

4. Why might the Gila Monster Project researchers need to use medical tongs?

______________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________
 Read and Respond
“Tracking Monsters”
ANSWER KEY
Please circle the answer that best fits the question.

1. What did Brian Park warn one of the volunteers not to do?
a) Brian Park warned one of the volunteers not to take a photograph of the Gila
monster he found.
b) He warned one of the volunteers not to put her fingers near the rock Gila
monster #291 was sleeping underneath.
c) Brian Park warned one of the volunteers not to touch the prickly pear or
fishhook cacti.

2. How did Brian Park find Gila monster #291?

a) Brian Park found Gila monster #291 using radio telemetry instruments.
b) Brian Park found Gila monster #291 by following the sound of a hawk’s call.
c) Brian Park didn’t find Gila monster #291; a middle-aged volunteer did.

3. Why is Kevin Bonine’s team tracking Gila monsters?

a) His team is tracking Gila monsters because they want to know how many Gila
monsters live in the area.
b) His team is tracking Gila monsters because they want to be able to warn
members of the public of their whereabouts.
c) His team is tracking Gila monsters because they want to learn more
about their travel patterns.

4. What do Brian Park and Kevin Bonine encourage members of the public to
do?
a) They encourage members of the public to stay away from Saguaro National
Park.
b) They encourage members of the public to take photographs of any Gila
monsters they encounter in Saguaro National Park.
c) They encourage members of the public to catch Gila monsters and bring them
to the visitor centers in Saguaro National Park.

5. Why do researchers give a Gila monster a plastic stick to chew on?

a) They give a Gila monster a plastic stick to chew on because this is how
they collect its DNA.
b) They give a Gila monster a plastic stick to chew on because this helps keep it
calm while they measure it.
c) They give a Gila monster a plastic stick to chew on because this is how they
collect its venom.
Please read each statement carefully. Write T if you think the
statement is TRUE. Write F if you think the statement is FALSE.

1. __F____ A bite from a Gila monster is deadly to humans.

2. __F____ The Gila monster, beaded lizard, and T-Rex are the only “monster lizard”
species left on Earth.
3. __T____ Gila monsters are active at night for much of the year.
4. __T____ Gila monsters store fat in their tails.
5. __T____ No two Gila monsters have the same patterns of color.

Please answer the questions in complete sentences.

1. What is Brian Park doing in Saguaro National Park?

Brian Park is tracking Gila monsters and collecting information about them in
Saguaro National Park.

2. Why is there so little known about Gila monsters?

There is so little known about Gila monsters because they spend a lot of their time
underground. Gila monsters don’t have to eat more than a few times a year so they
don’t spend much time out in the open like other animals that have to search for food a
lot more often. They are also mainly nocturnal.

3. What should you do if you encounter a Gila monster? Why?

If you encounter a Gila monster you should avoid it. Gila monsters have a painful,
venomous bite. It is also illegal to touch, hold, or collect them.

4. Why might the Gila Monster Project researchers need to use medical tongs?

The Gila Monster Project researchers might need to use medical tongs because they
need to keep Gila monsters still in order to measure and observe them properly.