Section II Reading Comprehension
Part A
Directions: Read the following four texts. Answer the questions below each text by choosing A, B, C or D. Mark your answers on the ANSWER SHEET.
Text 1
Every spring, raptors return to nesting sites across northern Michigan. The smallest of these birds of prey, a falcon called the American kestrel, flies through the region’s many cherry orchards and spends its days hunting for tinier creatures. This quest keeps the kestrels fed, but it also benefits the region’s cherry farmers.
Fruit farmers have been working symbiotically with kestrels for decades, adding nesting boxes and reaping the benefits of the birds eliminating pests like mice, voles, and songbirds that wreak havoc on crops. In addition to limiting physical damage, new research suggests kestrels also lower the risk of food-borne illnesses.
The study, published in the Journal of Applied Ecology, suggests that kestrels help keep harmful pathogens off fruit by scaring away small birds that carry them. Orchards housing kestrels saw an 81 percent reduction in crop damage and a 66 percent decrease in branches contaminated with bird feces. "Kestrels are not very expensive to bring into orchards, but they work pretty well," said Olivia Smith, the lead study author. "And people just like kestrels a lot, so I think it’s an attractive strategy."
Finding a good strategy for managing pests is essential. Pests cause expensive damage that worsens yields already impacted by climate change, labor shortages, and international trade issues. Growers have turned to nets, noisemakers, pesticides, and even habitat removal. However, these options can be expensive and ineffective. Birds like starlings and robins cost farms in top cherry-growing states about $85 million annually. For many growers, this is where kestrels come in.
It may seem counterintuitive to solve a bird problem by bringing in more birds, but kestrels are skilled hunters whose presence drives off songbirds. Although habitat loss and competition are leading to slow population declines for the American kestrel, they are still abundant enough in many areas that farmers only need to add a nesting box to attract them.
"I’ve noticed a difference having the kestrels around," said Brad Thatcher, a Washington state farmer who has housed kestrels for over 13 years. "There’s very little fecal damage from small songbirds at that time of year versus the fall."
To test the hygiene hypothesis, researchers evaluated 16 sweet cherry orchards in Michigan. Eight had nesting boxes; eight did not. The orchards with kestrels saw damaged fruit drop from 2.5 percent to 0.47 percent, and fecal contamination decreased three-fold. Researchers found that more than 10 percent of the bird droppings contained Campylobacter, a common bacteria causing food-borne illness.
Campylobacter spreads to humans through contact with infected animals. Although only one outbreak has been definitively linked to wild bird feces, the CDC considers it an underreported cause of illness. "If you have one predator versus a bunch of prey, you have fewer birds overall," Smith explained. "Even if the ones there are carrying bacteria, you reduce the transmission risk."
The study concludes that managing crops and meeting conservation goals can be done in tandem. Authors recommend farmers consider building kestrel boxes, which cost about $100 and require minimal maintenance. Whether boxes will be successfully inhabited depends on local bird abundance. In Michigan, kestrels are so plentiful that 80 to 100 percent of boxes become homes for them. "It seems like this is just a great tool for farmers," said senior author Catherine Lindell, suggesting farmers "put up a couple of boxes and see what happens."
21. According to Paragraph 2, fruit farmers encourage kestrels to nest in their orchards primarily to _______.
[A] increase the biodiversity of the local ecosystem
[B] protect their crops from being eaten by pests
[C] conduct scientific research on bird behavior
[D] provide a natural source of fertilizer for the soil
22. Why are traditional pest management strategies like nets and noisemakers considered less ideal?
[A] They are harmful to the kestrels nesting nearby.
[B] They often fail to address the root cause of climate change.
[C] They can be costly and do not always guarantee success.
[D] They require farmers to remove all natural habitats.
23. The author uses the term "counterintuitive" (Para. 5) to describe the idea of _______.
[A] introducing predators to control a bird problem
[B] relying on labor shortages to boost crop yields
[C] spending money on nesting boxes during a financial crisis
[D] removing natural habitats to attract more wildlife
24. The study mentioned in Paragraph 7 found that orchards with kestrels experienced _______.
[A] a significant increase in the population of starlings
[B] a three-fold rise in the number of contaminated branches
[C] a complete elimination of Campylobacter bacteria
[D] a substantial drop in both fruit damage and fecal contamination
25. Which of the following is a broader implication of the study's findings?
[A] Agricultural production and wildlife conservation can mutually support each other.
[B] Campylobacter outbreaks are exclusively caused by wild bird feces.
[C] Kestrel populations are declining too rapidly to be of use to farmers.
[D] Farmers should stop using all forms of pesticides immediately.
附注：根据历年考研英语真题阅读题源外刊等，摘选最新文章，模拟仿真出题。
参考答案见以下。
Quick look: BCADA
21. 【答案】B
【解析】题型：细节题
定位： 第二段第一句 "...reaping the benefits of the birds eliminating the mice, voles, songbirds and other pests that wreak havoc by feeding on not-yet-harvested crops."
分析： 农民通过设置巢箱吸引红隼，主要是为了利用红隼消灭那些破坏农作物的害虫（eliminating pests... that wreak havoc）。这与选项 B "protect their crops from being eaten by pests" 一致。
干扰项：[A] 增加生物多样性是结果，不是农民的首要动机（primary motivation）。 [D] 粪便（fertilizer）在文中被描述为污染源，而非肥料。
22. 【答案】C
【解析】题型：因果细节题
定位： 第四段第三句 "However, these options can be expensive and aren’t always effective."
分析： 文中提到网、噪音制造器等传统方法虽然被使用，但它们昂贵且并不总是有效（expensive and aren’t always effective）。这对应选项 C。
干扰项：[A] 文中未提及这些方法对红隼有害。 [B] 气候变化是背景挑战，不是这些工具要解决的根本原因。 [D] 移除栖息地是方法之一，而非所有方法都要求这样做。
23. 【答案】A
【解析】题型：词义理解/逻辑题
定位： 第五段第一句 "It may seem counterintuitive to solve a bird problem by bringing in more birds..."
分析： 作者认为“引入更多鸟类（红隼）来解决鸟类（害虫）问题”看起来是反直觉的（counterintuitive）。因为通常人们认为鸟是害虫，增加鸟似乎会加剧问题，但其实红隼是捕食者。这对应选项 A "introducing predators to control a bird problem"。
干扰项：[B] 劳动力短缺是背景问题。 [C] 巢箱并不昂贵（$100）。
24. 【答案】D
【解析】题型：细节题
定位： 第七段最后两句 "...damaged fruit drop from 2.5 percent to 0.47 percent. The number of crops contaminated... also saw a three-fold decrease..."
分析： 研究发现，有红隼的果园受损果实大幅下降，且粪便污染也减少了三倍。这与选项 D "substantial drop in both fruit damage and fecal contamination" 完全一致。
干扰项：[B] 原文是 decrease（减少），选项说是 rise（增加）。 [C] 原文说减少了污染，但检测发现仍有细菌（contained campylobacter），并未完全消除（complete elimination）。
25. 【答案】A
【解析】题型：主旨/推断题
定位： 倒数第二段第一句 "...demonstrate that managing crops and meeting conservation goals... can be done in tandem..."
分析： 研究表明，作物管理和实现保护目标（bolstering local kestrel populations）可以“齐头并进”（done in tandem）。这意味着农业生产与野生动物保护是可以互相支持的。这对应选项 A。
干扰项：[B] 第八段提到只有一个爆发被确切联系到野鸟粪便，并非 exclusively（仅仅）。 [C] 第五段提到红隼数量在缓慢下降，但文中强调它们依然足够丰富（abundant enough）来帮助农民。 [D] 文中建议考虑巢箱，未说要立即停止使用所有农药。
【参考译文】
每年春天，猛禽都会回到密歇根州北部的筑巢地。其中最小的一种猛禽，一种叫美洲红隼（American kestrel）的猎鹰，飞过该地区的许多樱桃园，整天捕食更小的生物。这种探索不仅让红隼填饱了肚子，也让该地区的樱桃种植户受益匪浅。
几十年来，果农一直与红隼共生合作，通过增加巢箱来获益，因为这些鸟类能消灭老鼠、田鼠、鸣禽和其他对未收割作物造成浩劫的害虫。除了限制物理损害外，新研究表明，红隼还能降低食源性疾病的风险。
这项发表在《应用生态学杂志》上的研究表明，红隼通过吓跑携带病原体的小鸟，帮助防止有害病原体沾染水果。安置红隼的果园作物受损减少了 81%，被鸟粪污染的树枝减少了 66%。“将红隼引入果园并不昂贵，但它们在驱赶不受欢迎的鸟类方面效果很好，”该研究的主要作者奥利维亚·史密斯（Olivia Smith）说，“而且人们非常喜欢红隼，所以我认为这是一个有吸引力的策略。”
找到一个好的害虫管理策略至关重要。害虫造成的昂贵损失加剧了本已受到气候变化、劳动力短缺和国际贸易问题影响的产量。种植者已经转向使用网、噪音制造器、杀虫剂，甚至移除栖息地。然而，这些选择可能昂贵且并不总是有效。椋鸟和知更鸟等鸟类每年给主要樱桃种植州的农场造成约 8500 万美元的损失。对于许多种植者来说，这正是红隼大显身手的地方。
通过引入更多的鸟来解决鸟类问题似乎有些反直觉，但红隼是熟练的猎手，它们的存在会驱赶鸣禽。尽管栖息地丧失和竞争导致美洲红隼种群数量缓慢下降，但在许多地区它们仍然足够丰富，农民只需增加一个巢箱就能吸引它们。
“我注意到有红隼在周围盘旋时情况有所不同，”华盛顿州拥有 13 年红隼安置经验的农民布拉德·撒切尔（Brad Thatcher）说，“与秋天相比，那时候小鸣禽造成的粪便破坏非常少。”
为了验证卫生假设，研究人员评估了密歇根州的 16 个甜樱桃园。八个有巢箱，八个没有。有红隼的果园受损果实从 2.5% 降至 0.47%，粪便污染减少了三倍。研究人员发现，超过 10% 的鸟粪中含有弯曲杆菌（Campylobacter），这是一种导致食源性疾病的常见细菌。
弯曲杆菌通过接触受感染的动物传播给人类。尽管只有一个爆发被确切地与野鸟粪便联系起来，但 CDC 认为这是一个被低估的致病原因。“如果你有一个捕食者而不是一群猎物，总的鸟就少了，”史密斯解释说，“即使那里的鸟携带细菌，你也能降低传播风险。”
该研究总结道，作物管理和实现保护目标可以齐头并进。作者建议农民考虑建造红隼巢箱，每个成本约 100 美元且维护极少。巢箱是否会被成功居住取决于当地鸟类的丰富程度。在密歇根州，红隼非常丰富，以至于 80% 到 100% 的巢箱都成了它们的家。“这似乎对农民来说只是一个很棒的工具，”资深作者凯瑟琳·林德尔（Catherine Lindell）说，建议农民“放几个箱子看看会发生什么”。
附注：
本篇 Flesch–Kincaid 可读性指标（估算英文文章纯语言阅读难度，数值越大代表难度越大，十分制）评分为 6.6。参考：2026年英语（一）真题四篇评分分别为 6.5、7.0、7.9、7.6，英语（二）为5.2、6.2、6.8、5.8 。在话题熟悉度，逻辑复杂度、段落结构线索丰富度方面综合指标（数值越大代表难度越大，十分制）评分为6.2。参考：2026年英语（一）真题四篇评分分别为5.8、6.5、8.2、8.0，英语（二）为4.5、6.0、6.5、5.2 。原文阅读链接为：https://insideclimatenews.org/news/22012026/michigan-cherry-farms-american-kestrel-food-safety/ ©图源水印/网络
