Page 40 - index

2023 ‫מועד סתיו‬ - 39 - ‫ פרק ראשון‬- ‫אנגלית‬

Reading Comprehension

This part consists of two passages, each followed by several related questions. For each
question, choose the most appropriate answer based on the text.

Text I (Questions 13-17)

(1) In the past century, scientists have attempted to establish whether the vocal
communication systems used by animals constitute language. The vocalizations of
apes and monkeys have been a particular focus of study. Dorothy Cheney and Robert
Seyfarth, for example, engaged in a long-running investigation of the vervet, a small

(5) African monkey.

Although other monkeys possess more advanced communication skills, Cheney
and Seyfarth chose to study the vervet for several reasons. For one thing, it is possible
to record the tiniest details of vervet life in the wild because each troop of vervets
inhabits a relatively small area and rarely leaves that territory. Cheney and Seyfarth

(10) were also intrigued by the distinctive warning sounds vervets make when their territory
is invaded.

Cheney and Seyfarth's research showed that vervets respond to each of their three
main predators – snakes, eagles, and leopards – with a different sound and survival
strategy. When a vervet senses the presence of a snake, it makes a particular call; the

(15) other vervets stand up on their hind legs and prepare to attack the snake as a group.
When an eagle flies overhead, a vervet emits a different cry, one that causes all the
vervets in the area to run and hide in low-lying bushes. When the leopard alarm is
sounded, the vervets climb high in the trees, where the leopard cannot follow. Were the
monkeys to make the wrong sound when a leopard approaches – and hide in the bushes

(20) instead of the trees – the result would be disastrous. Three enemies, three cries, and
three modes of action.

Cheney and Seyfarth also found that vervets exhibit a behavior generally thought to
be exclusively human: telling a lie. They observed that when two troops of vervets are
fighting, one of the animals from the weaker troop will suddenly scream out the "word"

(25) for leopard. All the monkeys then scatter for the trees, leaving the fight for another day.

Questions

13. An appropriate title for this text would be -

(1) Snakes, Eagles, and Leopards: The Vervet's Enemies
(2) The Languages of Vervets and Other African Monkeys
(3) Vervets: A Study in Animal Communication
(4) Cheney and Seyfarth: New Research on Animal Behavior

)‫© כל הזכויות שמורות למרכז ארצי לבחינות ולהערכה (ע"ר‬
.‫ בלא אישור בכתב מהמרכז הארצי לבחינות ולהערכה‬- ‫ כולה או חלקים ממנה‬- ‫ או ללמדה‬,‫אין להעתיק או להפיץ בחינה זו או קטעים ממנה בכל צורה ובכל אמצעי‬