11Б WRITING II TERM

Now England has hardly any predatory animals in the (1) ___________, but has it always been that way? Not according to ancient rhymes. England was once a country where predatory animals freely roamed and so danger lurked.

Many centuries ago bears, wolves, lynx, etc, ranged the forests and woodlands. Also wild boar, Elk and Aurochs (wild bulls) were (2) __________. However, although some of these species hung on till medieval times, most of these animals were long gone by that time.

The last English wolf in England was (3) __________ killed and the population extinct by the 16th century, although in Wales it is thought to have lasted a few centuries ….. The great Auroch herds did not least nearly as long and were sadly gone as early as the 9th Century, although on the continent it lasted for many, many ..… centuries.

The last English wolf in England was ….. killed and the population extinct by the 16th century, although in Wales it is thought to have lasted a few centuries (4) __________. The great Auroch herds did not least nearly as long and were sadly gone as early as the 9th Century, although on the continent it lasted for many, many ….. centuries.

There was an even bigger size herding animal in Britain in the early centuries. The Giant deer species called Megaloceros, with an antler span of up to 3 meters; it was possibly (5) __________ by the time Neolithic man was making wooden stockades. But the antlers were often found, and perhaps used for digging with.

Lynx is thought to have gone by the 10th Century, in England at least. It is thought that the Neolithic settlers mingling with peoples already present or taking over, came from the continent and brought their own animals; cattle, (6) __________ dogs and cats, pigs and also goats with them and built the wooden stockades to protect them.

In Saxon England land was cleared (7) __________ the forest and a large communal area was used for farming; this was divided into strips called furrows. However by Medieval times the rich landlords had claimed a lot of land and planted hedges ….. their boundaries. This may have meant farming was easier, but for the poor it meant they were beggared and starving, ….. the loss of their land meant the loss of their livelihoods.

n Saxon England land was cleared ….. the forest and a large communal area was used for farming; this was divided into strips called furrows. However by Medieval times the rich landlords had claimed a lot of land and planted hedges (8) __________ their boundaries. This may have meant farming was easier, but for the poor it meant they were beggared and starving, ….. the loss of their land meant the loss of their livelihoods.

In Saxon England land was cleared ….. the forest and a large communal area was used for farming; this was divided into strips called furrows. However by Medieval times the rich landlords had claimed a lot of land and planted hedges ….. their boundaries. This may have meant farming was easier, but for the poor it meant they were beggared and starving, (34) __________ the loss of their land meant the loss of their livelihoods.

Land by the Thames was taken from the people in medieval times and given over to sheep farmers for the trading of wool, which by then had become an important industry that provided (10) __________ for the crown.

Homing pigeons (11) ______ for their uncanny internal compass, yet a new study reveals that sometimes the birds get home the same way we do: They follow the roads.

Tim Guilford and Dora Biro at (12) ______ Oxford University followed pigeons in Oxford over a three-year period,...

 using tiny tracking devices equipped with global positioning system technology (13) ______ by Swiss and Italian colleagues.

What they discovered was surprising. Within ten kilometers of home, the pigeons relied less on their wellknown talents for decoding the sun’s position or deciphering the Earth’s magnetic field (14) ______ them navigate.

Instead they opted for a habitual route that followed linear features in the landscape, such as roads, rivers, railways, and hedge lines — even when it wasn't the most direct way home. “It was almost comical,” says Guilford. “One pigeon followed a road to a roundabout, then exited onto a major road that led to a second roundabout. Others flew down the River Thames, only to make a (15) ______ turn at a bridge.

.” Guilford suggests that sticking to a (16) ______ , linear route may actually make homing more reliable — and easier. “It made me smile to see it,” says Guilford. “You can imagine yourself flying along a road doing the same thing.”

The 19th-century Scottish engineer Robert Stevenson, who was active in designing early lighthouses, (17) ______ for an alternative colour to white — most lighthouses had a white beacon — when he built a lighthouse near to one that already existed,

because he was afraid ships (18) ______ be able to tell which was which.

Of the light sources and (19) ______ glasses available at the time, he found that red was a particularly intense light, meaning it could be seen from the greatest distance.

So in maritime signalling red became an alternative to white, and was later adopted by the Admiralty in 1852 (20) ______ the port-side on steam vessels. Green was adopted for the starboard-side, and vessels seeing the green light on other ships had the right of way.