Mô tả câu hỏi

Sea Turtles Feel the Heat

A   Sea Turtles are some of the oldest species in the world. The earliest sea turtles appeared over 200 million years ago. Today, however, sea turtle are in trouble. Their populations are getting smaller due to human activities and climate change.

B   In Australia, conservationists are studying the effects of climate change on sea turtles. They believe global warming may affect sea turtles in several ways. First, warming temperatures lead to rising sea levels. As sea levels rise, beach areas become flooded. Sea turtles lay their eggs in the beach sand. Flooding can destroy sea turtle nests and the eggs inside them.

C   Global warming also raises the temperature of sand around a sea turtle’s nest. The temperature of the nest affects the sex of the turtle’s eggs. Warmer temperatures (above 84 degrees Fahrenheit, or 29 degrees Celsius) produce mostly females. Cooler temperatures produce more males. So, as global temperature rise, more female babies will be born. Scientists predict that in 50 years almost all sea turtle babies in northern Australia will be female.

D   To survive these changes, sea turtles will need to adapt. But adapting is difficult because the environmental changes are happening quickly. In addition, sea turtles are more at risk from other dangers, especially ones related to human activities. For example, some populations are getting smaller because of predators brought in by humans. As conservationist Mariana Fuentes says, ‘We can’t be sure if sea turtles will adapt on their own.’ They may need our help to survive.

E   One of Fuentes’s projects is at Turtle Camp, a beach in northern Australia. Here, Fuentes helps to protect turtles that are laying eggs. She works with a team of rangers and researchers. Together, they prevent predators such as wild pigs and dogs from eating the turtles’ eggs. Without the rangers’ help, the turtles were losing up to 90% of their eggs. Now there are fewer predators, so the turtles can safely lay their eggs.

F   In the next few decades, sea turtles will face some tough challenges. With human help, says Fuentes, they will have a better chance to adapt and survive.

Complete the notes with details from the reading.

1. Sea turtles have been around for more than ...... years.
2. The number of sea turtles is getting smaller due to ......[Human activities] and .......
3. Sea turtles lay their eggs in nests in the .......
4. Predators such as ...... and ...... are dangerous for sea turtles.
5. Before Fuentes and her helpers started Turtle Camp, sea turtles were losing almost  ...... percent of their eggs.