2024届高考英语外刊阅读天天练：综合训练 八

高考英语外刊阅读天天练 综合训练 八 I. 阅读理解 题源 Scientists unravel mystery of beached whale in San Diego 【The Washington Post (January 1, 2024)】 When a whale washes ashore, it’s often in a sorry state --- bloated, decomposing, stinking to high heaven. But the 52-foot fin whale that stranded itself on San Diego’s popular Mission Beach on Dec. 10 looked big and blubbery, just as a whale should. Kerri Danil had no idea why this seemingly healthy giant had flung itself onto the beach. But her team would soon unravel the mystery. The likely culprit: killer whales. Here is what likely happened: The pod of orcas pounced on the fin whale, grabbing onto its fins in a team effort to drown or exhaust its massive prey. Attempting to flee, the fin whale hurled itself ashore and died. “It figured it would take its chances on the beach rather than with these killer whales,” said Robert Pitman, a marine ecologist at Oregon State University’s Marine Mammal Institute. Adding to the evidence of an orca assault is that, the next day, someone spotted killer whales swimming north away from the scene. The beached fin whale seems to be the latest victim of a pod of marauding orcas that has been eating and harassing dolphins and other marine mammals along the coast of Southern California. Whale watchers have spotted the group on at least 10 days between Dec. 11 and Christmas. For marine biologists in California, the arrival of this group of about a dozen killer whales, normally found along the coast of Mexico, doesn’t represent any sort of menace. It’s instead a sign of a recovering ecosystem off the Southern California coast, one in which marine mammals have increased enough to sustain hungry orcas. “We are seeing marine mammal populations rebounding, and it’s not too surprising that their predators are rebounding too,” Pitman said. The likely ambush on the fin whale, an animal many times an orcas size, illustrates the predators’ amazing hunting prowess. Decreasing water pollution, along with protections