Working With the Text  (Page 117)

A.1. Talk to your partner and say whether the following statements are true or false.

(i) No animal can survive without water.
(ii)Deserts are endless sand dunes.
(iii)Most snakes are harmless.
(iv)Snakes cannot hear, but they can feel vibrations through the ground.
(v) Camels store water in their humps.

Ans: (i)True (ii) False
(iii) True        (iv) True
( v) False.

2. Answer the following questions.
(i) How do desert animals survive without water? (1)
(ii)How do mongooses kill snakes? (6)
(iii)How does the hump of the camels help them to survive when there is no water? (9)                                                        ‘

Ans: (i) The desert animals find ways to survive for many days without water. Gerbils keep themselves cool in underground holes. The beetles catch drops of mois­ture on their legs. The camels get moisture from desert plants.
(ii)Mongooses have very swift reactions. They get away fast when the snake tries to strike. They trouble the snake until it is tired. Then they attack and kill the snake. They themselves don’t get any injury.
(iii)The hump of the camel is meant for storing fat and not water. That fat meets the camel’s need for water and nourishment.

B. Read the words/phrases in the box. With your partner find their meanings in the dictionary.
harsh      conditions       harmless       survive      intruder
threatened       predators      prey     continually

Fill in the blanks in the following passage with the above words/phrases.
All animals in forests and deserts struggle to________________________________ in______ .
Though most of the animals are _______________________ , some are dangerous when
________________ . If an___________________ is noticed, they attack or bite to save
themselves. They struggle _____________________ for food and water. Some animals
are called___________________ because they_____________________ on other animals.
Ans: All animals in forests and deserts struggle to survive in harsh conditions. Though most of the animals are harmless; some are dangerous when threatened. If an intruder is noticed, they attack or bite to save themselves. They struggle continu­ally for food and water. Some animals are called predators because they prey on other animals.

Speaking  (Page 118)

Look at these sentences.

• Deserts are the driest places on earth.
• Gerbils spend the hottest part of the day in cool underground burrows.

Now form pairs. Ask questions using a suitable form of the word in brackets. Try to answer the questions too.

Do you know

1.Which animal is the_________________ (tall)?
2.Which animal runs the_________________ (fast)?
3.Which place on earth is the_______________ (hot) or the_______________ (cold)?
4.Which animal is the_________________ (large)?
5.Which is the________________ (tall) mountain in the world?
6.Which is the________________ (rainy) place on earth?

7.Which is the________________ (old) living animal?

Can you add some questions of your own?

Ans:

1. The giraffe is the tallest animal.
2. Leopard runs the fastest.
3. Aziza Libya is the hottest and the Verkhoyansk (Russia is the coldest).
4. The blue whale is the largest animal.
5. Mount Everest is the tallest mountain in the world.
6. Mawsynram (Meghalaya) is the rainiest place on earth.
7. The giant tortoise is the oldest living animal.

Thinking about Language (Page 118)

A. Look at these sentences.

• Most snakes are quite harmless, but a few are poisonous.
• Most snakes lay eggs, but the rattlesnake gives birth to its young.

Now write five sentences like these using ‘most’ and the clues below.

1. (90% of) people are honest (10%) are dishonest.
_______________________
2. (Lots of) fruit have plenty of sugar, (some) citrus fruit are low in sugar.
______________________
3.(Every soft drink except this one) has lots of ‘empty calories’.
_______________________
4.(The majority of) films are romances, (a few) are on other topics.
_______________________
5.(A majority of) people agree that he is a good leader, (just a few) disagree.
_______________________

Ans:

1. Most of the people are honest, but a few are dishonest.
2. Most of the fruits have plenty of sugar; but some citrus fruit are low in sugar.
3. Most of the soft drinks except this one have lots of empty calories.
4. Most of the films are romances, only a few are on other topics.
5 .Most of the people agree that he is a good leader, just a few disagree.

Look at these sentences.

• Animals cannot survive for long without water.
• So desert animals have to find different ways of coping.

The first sentence says what cannot happen or be done; the second tells us what must, therefore, be done, what it is necessary to do. Complete these sen­tences using cannot and have to/has to.

1. You______________ reach the island by land or air; you___________________ go byboat.
2.We ______________ see bacteria with our eyes; we ______________________  look at them through a microscope.
3. He ______________ have a new bicycle now; he__________________ wait till next year.
4.Old people often________________ hear very well; they __________________ use a hearing aid.
5.Road users_______________ do what they wish; they___________________ follow the traffic rules.
6.She ______________ accept this decision; she ____________________  question it.
7. You______________ believe everything you hear; you__________________ use your own judgement.

Ans:

1. You cannot reach the island by land or air; you have to go by boat.
2. We cannot see bacteria with our eyes; we have to look at them through a microscope.
3. He cannot have a new bicycle now; he has to wait till next year.
4. Old people often cannot hear very well; they have to use a hearing aid.
5. Road users cannot do what they wish; they have to follow the traffic rules.
6. She cannot accept this decision; she has to question it. ■
7. You cannot believe everything you hear; you have to use your own judgement.

Writing   (Page 120)

Imagine you are journeying through a desert. Write a couple of paragraphs describing what you see and hear.
Ans. A desert is not a place worth living. It is a nightmare to journey through the Thar Desert. From my personal experience, I know how hot the deserts are. I saw the end­less expanse of sand and sand dunes. Only here and there I saw a few thorny bushes. There are very few birds. The camel is a common sight. There are only small villages around oases. Life is very hard there. Water is scarce, so is green­ery.
We hear the blowing of hot winds and the howling of sandstorms. We can hear the calling of mongooses and the howling of jackals. Now and then we can hear the tinkling of bells around the neck of camels.

MORE QUESTIONS SOLVED

I.SHORT ANSWER TYPE QUESTIONS

1. Deserts have a very thin population. Why?
Ans. Deserts have very little water and vegetation. There is greenery only around the water springs or oases. So people don’t prefer to live there.

2. What are some of the notable features told about snakes in the lesson?
Ans. There are more than 2300 different kinds of snakes in the world. Some are up to 11 metres long. Not all are poisonous. Most snakes lay eggs, but many of them give birth to their young.

3. Where are rattlesnakes found?
Ans. Rattlesnakes are very common on the American continent. They feed on mice and rats etc.

4. What does the author tell about mongooses?
Ans. Mongooses are very amusing animals to watch. They are a common sight in Africa. They eat beetles and other small creatures. They themselves are eaten up by hawks, eagles and large snakes. They are famous for killing snakes.

5. What do you learn in the lesson about camels?
Ans. Camels live mainly in the desert. They can drink up to 30 gallons of water in just ten minutes. They get all the moisture they need from desert plants. Some camels have only one hump, others have two. Humps are full of fat which is used as food.

II.LONG ANSWER TYPE QUESTIONS

1. How do you define or describe a desert? Name some common desert animals. How do they survive?
Ans. A desert is a very hot and dry place that goes without rain even for years. It is
sandy with hardly any vegetation or villages. There is neither water nor greenery. Still some animals are found there. For example, gerbils, beetles, snakes, mongooses and camels. These animals survive the harsh conditions in their own way. Some live in burrows (holes). Camels have winter coats to keep warm and shorter, tidier coats to keep cool in summer.

2. What information about snakes do you get in the lesson Desert Animals?
Ans. There are more than 2300 different kinds of snakes around the world. Some are harmless, others very poisonous. Some lay eggs, while others give birth to the young one. The rattler lives in the day and rocky deserts of America. Large pythons can go without eating for a year or more. Mongooses are famous for their skill in killing snakes. A camel can drink up to 30 gallons of water in just ten minutes. It eats plants. Its humps store fast-food.

3. What are some of the particular habits of the mongoose and the camel?
Ans. Mongooses like to hunt together. But they are afraid of their enemies like hawks, eagles and snakes. They warn others of the danger by their peculiar calling. They are famous for killing snakes.
Camels were taken as pets long, long ago. They have long or short coats to keep them warm or cool. A camel can drink up to 30 gallons of water at a time. Its humps-single or double-store food that is used as food. They are adapted to desert life.