Scientists discovered 163 new species in Southeast Asia’s Greater Mekong region last year，but all are at risk of extinction due to climate change，the WWF said in a report released Friday.
The newly discovered creatures include a birdeating frog with fangs (毒牙)，a bird that would rather walk than fly and a gecko (壁虎) whose alien appearance inspired the report’s title of “Close Encounters”，the conservation group said.
The report was released ahead of major UN talks on climate change in Bangkok next week，which are being held before a makeorbreak summit in Copenhagen this December.
“Some species will be able to adapt to climate change，and many will not，potentially resulting in massive extinction，” Stuart Chapman，director of the WWF Greater Mekong program，said in the report.“Rare and endangered species like those newly discovered are especially vulnerable (易受伤害的) because climate change will further shrink their already restricted habitats，” he said.
“The new discoveries in 2010 include 100 plants,28 fish,18 reptiles,14 amphibians,2 mammals and a bird，”the WWF report said.The area spans Cambodia，Laos，Myanmar，Thailand，Vietnam and China’s Yunnan Province.
“Among the new species is the birdeating fanged frog，which remains hidden in a protected area of Thailand despite the fact that scientists are studying there for 40 years，” the report said.
The tigerstriped pit viper was discovered accidentally on an island off the coast of Vietnam when a scientist was looking for a lizard and his son pointed out that his hand was on a rock right next to the snake’s fangs.“We caught the snake and the gecko and they both proved to be new species，” researcher Lee Grismer of La Sierra University in California was quoted as saying in the report.The leopard gecko，found on another Vietnamese island，has the coloring of a leopard and bizarre orange，catlike eyes and thin legs.
The Greater Mekong region has proved a rich area for scientists.The WWF said in December 2010 that it had found 1,068 new species there between 1997 and 2009.
【小题1】What is special about the newly discovered bird?A．It usually walks.B．It likes walking and flying.C．It can eat other birds.D．It can eat frogs.【小题2】Stuart Chapman believes that .A．most of the newly discovered species can adapt to climate changeB．climate change can cause massive extinction of the newly discovered speciesC．the newly discovered species are not so vulnerable to climate changeD．many species have already died out because of climate change【小题3】When Lee Grismer discovered the tigerstriped pit viper，he probably felt .A．frightenedB．disappointedC．excitedD．puzzled【小题4】What does the passage mainly tell us?A．The Greater Mekong region is a rich area for scientists.B．Many rare species remain to be discovered in the Mekong region.C．Scientists have discovered many new species in the Mekong region.D．Climate change threatens Mekong new species.A
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(答案→)A
解析：
【小题1】 A
解析 细节理解题。由文章第二段第一句可知，这种新发现的鸟的独特之处是它喜欢行走，而不是飞翔。
【小题2】 B
解析 细节理解题。由文章第四段可知，这些新发现的物种很少能适应气候变暖，因此会出现大量灭绝的情况。
【小题3】 C
解析 推理判断题。由文章倒数第二段可知，这种蛇的发现很偶然，而且后来被证明是一个新的物种，因此发现者应该感到“惊喜”，故选excited。
【小题4】 D
解析 主旨大意题。由文章第一段可知，本文重点在于说明大湄公河次区新发现的物种面临受气候变暖濒临灭绝的危险，而不是强调新物种的发现，故选D项。