Polar bears find themselves between an iceberg

and a hard place

Koda, the 10-year-old male polar bear at the Pittsburgh Zoo, emerges from a
cubbyhole atop the exhibit he shares with 14-year-old Kobe. He steps out to a
nearby ledge, swinging his head from side to side. Then he backs into the
cubbyhole, head still weaving. A moment later, he comes back out to start the
pattern over again. He keeps doing the same thing, over and over.
Koda's behavior is not all that odd. An estimated 85 percent of polar bears in
North American zoos engage in repetitive actions like these. Experts say these
"stereotypic behaviors" are apparently purposeless. Many believe they are the
result of confining polar bears in zoo exhibits.
Laurel Braitman, author of Animal Madness," agrees. She has expressed
concern about repetitive behaviors like Koda's, calling them a show of frustration.
But even in nature, its increasingly hard for bears to act naturally. In the
Arctic, polar bears typically roam hundreds or even thousands of miles. But because
of global climate change, the ice they tread is shrinking.
On The Losing End
Donald Moore, a scientist at the Association of Zoos and Aquariums, says
polar bears are losing their natural surroundings. Moore believes zoos can help. He
says that it's important for zoo animals to represent their relatives in the wild, so
people will care about them.
But some people aren't convinced. I think theres very little question about
whether bears suffer in (zoos), said Rob Laidlaw of Zoocheck Canada, an animal
rights group. Animals can be upset just by people looking at them.
Laidlaw says zoos just can't give polar bears the same experiences they have
in nature. Polar bears are used to traveling up to 60 miles in a day. Even the largest
zoo exhibits measure less than an acre.
Others share Laidlaw's concerns. In 2003, researchers at Oxford University
argued that zoos must make significant changes to exhibits for roaming animals.
Otherwise, animals like polar bears should be left out of zoos altogether.
Pittsburghs zoo didnt have polar bears back then. At the time, the zoo told
the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, we wont have them unless we have a suitable
exhibit.
Things Could Get Worse

Three years later, the Pittsburgh Zoo opened a $12.5 million exhibit called
Water's Edge. It featured elements that Laidlaw stressed as important to the polar
bears' well-being. For example, the layout includes a separate back area. This
design allows the bears to move in and out of public view as they wish.
Pittsburghs polar bears are also given enrichment activities throughout the
day. Sometimes they crush plastic barrels. Other times they have to figure out how
to get icy mixtures of fish and lard out of containers.
Pittsburgh Zoo's Joseph Gaspard acknowledges that Koda and Kobe both
exhibit repetitive behavior at times. But its hard to get at the heart of what it
means, Gaspard said. Maybe it's "just kind of a release of energy" like when
humans pace, he added.
Things could be worse for the polar bears. And in the wild, they probably will
be.
Steven C. Amstrup is the top scientist for a group called Polar Bears
International. Amstrup believes wild polar bears won't exist in 2100. Others think
that polar bears will still exist, but only in the most remote areas.
A Different Kind Of Threat
Right now, an estimated 20,000 polar bears live in the Arctic. By comparison, there
are fewer than 4,000 tigers in the wild. It might seem like polar bears aren't really in
that much trouble yet, but the problems they face are very difficult to address.
When an animal species is in danger, it usually has to do with people hunting them
or destroying the area where they live. As Amstrup pointed out, there are steps
people can take to prevent those things from happening. But polar bears face a
much different kind of threat. You cant build a fence to protect (bears) from
climate change, said Amstrup.
Polar bears live much of the year on the Arctic ice, where they hunt seals and
breed. But as global temperatures warm, it takes longer for the ice to form. This
leaves the bears trapped on land, where they must live off of their stored fat. They
grow weak and produce sickly cubs.
As a result, some conservationists like the idea of using zoo exhibits to keep polar
bears in the public eye. They say people can relate to polar bears and that makes
them want to help.
Zoos might help people understand the polar bears' situation, but they are still
controversial. Many insist that zoo animals shouldn't have to suffer in small exhibits
to help their relatives in the wild.
Quiz 1

1. Select the paragraph from the section "A Different Kind Of Threat"
that explains why it may be difficult to save polar bears in the Arctic.

2. Each answer option describes one way zoo exhibits for polar bears
have been improved EXCEPT:
(A) This design allows the bears to move in and out of public view as they
wish.
(B) It featured elements that Laidlaw stressed as important to the polar bears'
well-being.
(C) Pittsburghs polar bears are also given enrichment activities throughout
the day.
(D) Pittsburgh Zoo's Joseph Gaspard acknowledges that Koda and Kobe both
exhibit repetitive behavior at times.
3. Each answer option includes a quote from the article. Which quote
conveys or supports the main idea of the article?
(A) I think theres very little question about whether bears suffer in (zoos), said
Rob Laidlaw of Zoocheck Canada, an animal rights group.
(B) At the time, the zoo told the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, we wont have them
unless we have a suitable exhibit.
(C) But its hard to get at the heart of what it means, Gaspard said.
(D) Maybe it's "just kind of a release of energy" like when humans pace, he added.
4 Which of the following sentences is a personal opinion or judgment?
(A) Polar bears are used to traveling up to 60 miles in a day.
(B) Even the largest zoo exhibits measure less than an acre.
(C) Pittsburghs zoo didnt have polar bears back then.
(D) Otherwise, animals like polar bears should be left out of zoos altogether.

Animals are lots bigger than they

were millions of years ago, study
shows
Biologists have long argued over whether bigger is better.
A Stanford University team now has proof that evolution favors growth. Evolution is the
process by which types of life have developed over many, many years. The researchers
found that animals living today are much bigger than ancestors that lived millions of
years ago. The researchers found that many family lines of sea creatures have evolved
into huge animals.

The Fossil Record

Researchers Jonathan Payne and Noah Heim studied the records about the remains of
things that lived hundreds of millions of years ago, called the fossil record. They found
that the fossil record shows that a century-old idea known as Copes Rule is true.
Over the past 542 million years, marine animals have gotten 150 times larger, they said.
The scientists reported their work in the magazine Science.
Think of the fat scallop on your dinner plate, for example. Its ancestors were about onequarter inch long.
There has been this open question of whether animals get bigger, over time but
theres been a lack of data, said Heim. He is a researcher at Stanfords School of Earth,
Energy and Environmental Systems. He works with Payne there.

"Getting Bigger. And Bigger"

We found that things are getting bigger. And bigger, he said.

Copes Rule is named for a 19th century American scientist. It argues that animals often
start out small and get bigger over millions of years. For proof, one need look no further
than horses. They started out no bigger than a house pet.
But Cope's Rule fell out of favor starting in the 1970s, when a few major exceptions
were exposed. Famous Harvard scientist Stephen Jay Gould dismissed it in one of his
books. Gould said that Cope's Rule was not an unchanging law of nature.
The Stanford team took a tough look at Cope's Rule.
With the help of dozens of high school students and Stanford students, they measured
more than 17,000 groups, or genera, of marine fossils. Thats three-quarters of marine
animals in the fossil record and almost two-thirds of all animals that ever lived.

Cope's Rule Is Correct

Students carefully measured photographs and detailed illustrations of fossils in the
Treatise on Invertebrate Paleontology, a 50-volume set of books. The books are
considered the best source on animals without a spine (invertebrates) known to science.
Then the measurements were analyzed using computers.
What they found was that Cope was correct.
They also found out that evolution can be predicted, which was even more important.
Take the sea urchin, for instance. Two million years ago in the warm, shallow and salty
oceans in the Western U.S., the typical sea urchin was about two inches long, said
Heim. Now the creatures can reach nearly a foot.
The increase isnt because each animal grew steadily larger from generation to
generation, they found. Instead, bigger species tended to survive better than smaller
species.

Big Growth Spurts

And size doesnt increase gradually, but happens in leaps. The urchins first big jump
came during the 250 million years between the Cambrian period (over 500 million years
ago), and Permian period (roughly 250 millions years ago). This was the time when
plants, amphibians and reptiles first show up. Urchins didn't get larger during the
Mesozoic period, from 250 to 65 million years ago. But then their size took another jump
in the late Cenozoic period, around 60 million years ago, when mammals first appeared.

The growth spurts may be related to mass extinctions. These happen when large
numbers of species die out which sets the stage for new creatures, Heim said.
The scientists didnt study why being big is such an advantage. Maybe its harder for
anything else to eat them. Perhaps mates find them more attractive. Or they could be
better equipped to fight off competitors.

A Planet Of Giants?
Will we someday live on a planet of giants?
No, size eventually catches up with you, Heim said. Breathing becomes a problem,
because lungs need to be huge and very efficient to keep supplying the air needed to
support such a large body. Food is a challenge, too. There just isnt enough of it.
At some point, there must be some sort of maximum, he said.
There is this final twist: Humans overrule Copes Rule. Because hunters and fishers
target large animals, they tip natural selection in favor of smaller animals, said Heim.
So just when Cope's Rule is finally proven, people might be playing a role in changing
it, Heim said.

Quiz 1
1. Select the sentence from the section "Big Growth Spurts" that indicates
the possible reasons why evolution favors animals of a bigger size.
(A) And size doesnt increase gradually, but happens in leaps. The urchins first big
jump came during the 250 million years between the Cambrian period (over 500
million years ago), and Permian period (roughly 250 millions years ago).
(B) This was the time when plants, amphibians and reptiles first show up. Urchins
didn't get larger during the Mesozoic period, from 250 to 65 million years ago. But
then their size took another jump in the late Cenozoic period, around 60 million
years ago, when mammals first appeared.
(C) The growth spurts may be related to mass extinctions. These happen when large
numbers of species die out which sets the stage for new creatures, Heim said.

(D) The scientists didnt study why being big is such an advantage. Maybe its
harder for anything else to eat them. Perhaps mates find them more attractive. Or
they could be better equipped to fight off competitors.
2 Which of the following sentences from the article presents an argument
against Cope's Rule?
(A) "There has been this open question of whether animals get bigger, over time but there's been a lack of data," said Heim.
(B) They also found out that evolution can be predicted, which was even more
important.
(C) Urchins didn't get larger during the Mesozoic period, from 250 to 65 million
years ago.
(D) Because hunters and fishers target large animals, they tip natural selection in
favor of smaller animals, said Heim.
3 Select the sentence from the section "Cope's Rule Is Correct" that is
LEAST important to include in the article's summary.
(A) The books are considered the best source on animals without a spine
(invertebrates) known to science. Then the measurements were analyzed using
computers.
(B) They also found out that evolution can be predicted, which was even more
important.
(C) Two million years ago in the warm, shallow and salty oceans in the Western U.S.,
the typical sea urchin was about 2 inches long, said Heim.
(D) The increase isn't because each animal grew steadily larger from generation to
generation, they found. Instead, bigger species tended to survive better than
smaller species.
4 What is the central idea of the section "A Planet Of Giants?"
(A) Bigger animals have breathing problems and they don't get enough food to
sustain themselves.
(B) The increase in size can't go on forever and it will stop once it reaches a
maximum point.
(C) Human activities are not favorable for Cope's Rule.

(D) Fishers and hunters target only larger animals.

Big cats first roared in Asia, new

find of oldest fossils suggests
The fossil remains of a previously unknown ancient leopard species are shaking up
long-held beliefs. According to a new study, they suggest that big cats first arose in Asia,
not Africa.
Paleontologists, scientists who study fossils, discovered the previously unknown sister
species to the modern snow leopard while on a 2010 expedition to Tibet. Seven
specimens from three individuals range in age from 4.1 million to 5.9 million years old.
That makes them as much as 2 million years older than any previously known big cats.
Panthera blytheae was slightly smaller than the snow leopard. It probably roamed the
Tibetan plateau for several million years. There it dined on a plentiful supply of antelope,
pika and blue sheep, according to paleontologist Zhijie Jack Tseng. Lead author of the

new study, Tseng is currently working at New York's American Museum of Natural
History.
We think that the snow leopard and this new cat probably represent a new lineage,"
said Tseng. It was "adapted to the high elevation environment of the Tibetan plateau.

Big Cats, Big Problem

Big cats have presented serious problems for paleontologists: They didn't leave behind
many fossils. The result was a poor record of a time span on Earth that exceeded that of
modern man by millions of years.
Modern genetic research based on living species suggests that big cats split off from
other cats about 11 million years ago. They then evolved into various species about 6
million years ago. They became the big cats like lions, tigers, jaguars and leopards.
And thats the story that the molecular biologists would tell, Tseng said. If you only
looked at the fossil, it would suggest Africa. If you only looked at DNA, it would suggest
Asia." There was no new information to bring the two theories together until now, Tseng
said.
The team used the new fossils and other specimens to rework the evolutionary tree and
match it up with a DNA-based timeline. Enormous gaps still remain in the fossil record.
Nonetheless, the newly reconstructed evolutionary tree supports the theory that the big
cats arose and flourished in Asia.
We have the oldest but not the most primitive (species)," Tseng said. This "is interesting
because it means that there are more primitive cats to be found in the fossil record that
would be older than the one we have now.

Species Name A Birthday Present

Panthera blytheae was named in honor of Blythe Haaga, daughter of longtime museum
supporters Paul and Heather Haaga.
Paul is the former president of the museums board of trustees. The smallest known
dinosaur species was already named for his family Fruitadens haagarorum. Heather
suggested naming the ancient leopard species for their daughter, Blythe. The younger

Haaga became fascinated with snow leopards after receiving a stuffed toy snow leopard
as a child. She now is a comic and writer splitting her time between Chicago and Los
Angeles. The family timed the honor for Blythes 30th birthday.
Hes such a strong supporter of the museum, said Xiaoming Wang, a paleontologist at
the museum. Its a tradition among paleontologists to honor our colleagues in this way.
Blythe found out about her birthday honor as she flew home from Chicago on Monday.
Details of the significance of the find were kept quiet until the paper was published.
Now Im super honored, she said when told of the studys findings. I was just honored
before.
The snow leopard, Blythe said, was the stuffed animal that I loved, and therefore every
book report was on snow leopards for a long time after that. It became my fascination
for a while.

Quiz
1 The section "Big Cats, Big Problem" highlights paleontologists' efforts to
fit the new findings into the story of the evolution of big cats. Which
paragraph from that section tells that story?
(A) The team used the new fossils and other specimens to rework the evolutionary
tree and match it up with a DNA-based timeline. Enormous gaps still remain in the
fossil record. Nonetheless, the newly reconstructed evolutionary tree supports the
theory that the big cats arose and flourished in Asia.

(B) Modern genetic research based on living species suggests that big cats split off
from other cats about 11 million years ago. They then evolved into various species
about 6 million years ago. They became the big cats like lions, tigers, jaguars and
leopards.
(C) We have the oldest but not the most primitive (species)," Tseng said. This "is
interesting because it means that there are more primitive cats to be found in the
fossil record that would be older than the one we have now.
(D) Big cats have presented serious problems for paleontologists: They didn't leave
behind many fossils. The result was a poor record of a time span on Earth that
exceeded that of modern man by millions of years.
2 Which sentence from the section "Species Name A Birthday Present"
explains why the new species was named after a person?
(A) The snow leopard, Blythe said, was the stuffed animal that I loved, and
therefore every book report was on snow leopards for a long time after that.
(B) Its a tradition among paleontologists to honor our colleagues in this way.
(C) Details of the significance of the find were kept quiet until the paper was
published.
(D) The younger Haaga became fascinated with snow leopards after receiving a
stuffed toy snow leopard as a child.
3 Select the paragraph from the introduction [paragraphs 1-4] that BEST
summarizes the article as a whole.
4 Each answer option is a quote from the article. Which one BEST supports
the main idea of the article?
(A) We think that the snow leopard and this new cat probably represent a new
lineage," said Tseng.
(B) If you only looked at the fossil, it would suggest Africa."
(C) We have the oldest but not the most primitive (species)," Tseng said.
(D) Its a tradition among paleontologists to honor our colleagues in this way

Wolves howl together, hunt

together and, researchers say,
yawn together
People yawn, but not just when they are sleepy. Humans seem to "catch" a yawn when
someone near them yawns. Chimpanzees and baboons also yawn for the same reason.
Even dogs do. But why?
Scientists believe it is a sign that these animals are capable of empathy feeling what
other animals feel. A new study of wolves suggests it is more common among animals
than experts had realized.
Humans and other primates are more likely to catch a yawn when they are around those
with whom they share a close social bond. In people, catching a yawn is more
common among those who get high scores on empathy tests. Scientists found it is less
common among those with mental conditions that cause them to have less empathy.
Yawning is also contagious for dogs. But theres a twist: They dont yawn in response to
yawns from other dogs, but to yawns from people. Whats more, the yawns are more
contagious when the person doing the yawning has a strong emotional connection to
the dog.

A Trip To The Zoo

A group of scientists in Japan wondered if the close connection between dogs and
humans set the dogs apart from other animals. Do some other animals, aside from the
primates, catch yawns too?
Dogs are "unusually skilled" at reading human behaviors, the University of Tokyo
scientists noted in their study. The researchers believe "it could be possible that dogs
ability to yawn contagiously evolved with the capacity for reading human communicative
signals.

On the other hand, if dogs were born likely to catch yawns, then wolves should be too.
Wolves are the closest living relatives of dogs. Like dogs, they are also highly social,"
the researchers wrote.
So off they went to the Tama Zoological Park, a zoo near Tokyo. In the park was a pack
of 12 wolves. There was a mother, a father and their 10 offspring (five males and five
females). The researchers spent 254 hours observing the wolves over a five-month
period, paying special attention to instances of yawning.
The researchers only studied certain wolf yawns. They looked at yawns that occurred
when wolves were awake and relaxed, and not in distress. When they spotted such a
yawn, the researchers noted the wolf involved, the other wolves nearby, and where the
wolves were looking when the yawn occurred.
Then the researchers watched the nearby wolves for the next three minutes to see if any
of them yawned too. If they did, they noted the time between the initial yawn and the
follow-up yawn.

Strong Social Bonds

The researchers also watched the wolves for three-minute periods that did not start with
a yawn. They wanted to make sure the wolves didn't just yawn at any time.
The scientists found that the wolves were indeed more likely to yawn after another wolf
near them yawned. Yet, a yawn was more likely to cause a follow-up yawn if the two
animals had a strong social bond. Not only that, but among females, the closer the
bond, the shorter the gap between the first and second yawn.
Yawns were also more likely to be contagious if they could be seen, not just heard.
Yawning in wolves is contagious, the scientists concluded. They say it makes sense.
For a highly social animal such as the wolf, coordinating activities "promotes social
cohesiveness of the pack.
Yawns between friendly wolves were more catching than yawns between wolves who
were not friends. The researchers think this proves that wolves feel empathy, and that
other animals may as well. They wrote that empathy might be present in a wide range
of species.

Quiz
1 Which of the following sentences about contagious yawning is CORRECT?
(A) Yawns are more contagious when the two wolves share the same set of living
conditions.
(B) Yawns are more contagious when the distance between the two wolves is less.
(C) Yawns are more contagious when the two wolves share a strong social bond.
(D) Yawns are more contagious when the two wolves yawn at the same time.

2 To check contagious yawning in wolves, scientists studied them under all

the following conditions EXCEPT:
(A) in a state of distress
(B) when they were awake
(C) when they were relaxed
(D) where they were watching when the yawn occurred
3 Select the sentence that is MOST important to include in a summary of
the article.
(A) People yawn, but not just when they are sleepy.
(B) A group of scientists in Japan wondered if the close connection between dogs
and humans set the dogs apart from other animals.
(C) So off they went to the Tama Zoological Park, a zoo near Tokyo.
(D) The scientists found that the wolves were indeed more likely to yawn after
another wolf near them yawned.
4 What factor makes wolves show the ability to yawn contagiously?
(A) They belong to the same family as dogs.
(B) They are also highly social animals like dogs.
(C) They too have evolved in a similar manner as dogs.
(D) They too have the ability to read communicative signals.