Bringing Back the Bats

Transcription

1 New Mexico Spring 2005 Core Grade: 04 Content: R Form: Core Position: Standard Tested: Bringing Back the Bats The sun has set. Wings flap through the night sky. Thousands of bats take flight. They leave the cave in search of dinner. They will spend their night finding food. Then they will return to the cave. This is the scene at Carlsbad Caverns and other caves in New Mexico during the summer months. Most bat species come to these caves for the summer to have their babies and raise them. When the summer is over, they move on to a different home. The number of bats in New Mexico has been decreasing for a long time. Scientists are trying to discover the reasons. The first written record of a human visit to Carlsbad Caverns was in It is believed that several million bats lived in the caverns at that time! Today, there are only about 300,000 bats at Carlsbad Caverns. Why is the bat population growing smaller? One cause could be the poisons used in the surrounding areas by humans. Some of these poisons are used to kill bugs. The bats eat the bugs, so they eat the poisons in the bugs too. Just being near the poisons may also harm the bats. Another reason bats are decreasing in population could be that humans are putting bats in peril by going into the caves where the bats live. When humans walk or drive through caves, they are not always careful. They may harm bats. They may also harm the bats homes, called roosts. How can this problem be solved? Scientists and others are working hard to teach people how to protect bats and their roosts. There may also be ways to control how many people enter the caves where bats live. It is hoped that the bat population will begin to grow again. Perhaps it will grow back to the size it was in Reject

2 Grade: 04 Content: R Form: Core Position: 35 Standard Tested: ID Read these sentences and answer the question below. Solving the bat problem is work. The rock they found in the cave was too to crack. Which word from the article best completes both sentences? A B C D firm hard exciting different

3 Grade: 04 Content: R Form: Core Position: 36 Standard Tested: IC List one way mentioned in the article that people could help the bat population begin to grow again. Explain why this way would be helpful to the bats. Be sure to write your response in your answer document.

4 Grade: 04 Content: R Form: Core Position: 37 Standard Tested: ID What is the meaning of population as used in the article? A B C D The act of counting a whole number of objects The total number of one kind of animal living in one place A group of items from which samples are taken A body of persons having something in common

5 Encyclopedia Encyclopedia Encyclopedia Encyclopedia New Mexico Spring 2005 Core Grade: 04 Content: R Form: Core Position: 38 Standard Tested: IB In which volume would you find more information about bats and their cave homes? Volume 1 Volume 2 Volume 3 Volume 4 Aa - By Ca - El Em - Ha He - Kn A B C D

6 Grade: 04 Content: R Form: Core Position: 39 Standard Tested: IB Where would you look to find the most current information about how scientists are helping bats? Explain why this would be the best choice to use. Be sure to write your response in your answer document.

7 Grade: 04 Content: R Form: Core Position: 40 Standard Tested: IA If you were having trouble understanding the meaning of the word peril in the story, which strategy would you use? A B C D Re-read the title of the article Use the picture to help you understand Look the word up in a dictionary Use the word in your own sentence

8 Grade: 04 Content: R Form: Core Position: 41 Standard Tested: IC Explain two reasons why the number of bats is decreasing. Describe two ways in which humans can protect the bats. Use information from the text to support your answer. Be sure to respond in your answer document.