Номер 1, страница 68 - гдз по английскому языку 5-7 класс (Solutions) учебник Фалла, Дэвис

Lesson six F.

Real animals that were once a myth.

One.

Giant Squid.

In ancient Greek times, there were stories about huge sea monsters with very long arms. Similar stories appeared in the Middle Ages. These monsters lived in very deep water, but sometimes they attacked sailors. However, were these creatures real or were they a myth? For hundreds of years, scientists were not sure. But that changed in eighteen seventy-three. A giant squid attacked a small boat near the East Coast of North America. The fishermen in the boat used an axe to cut off two of the giant squid's arms. They were six meters long. They showed the arms to the scientists at a local museum. The scientists were amazed. Today, everyone knows that giant squid are real, but people very rarely see them. In fact, only one video exists of a giant squid in its natural habitat.

Two.

Gorillas.

About two thousand five hundred years ago, an ancient Greek explorer called Hanno traveled to Africa. On one island near the coast, there was a group of strange people with black hair on their faces and bodies. He asked the local people for information about them. They were, Gorillai, they answered. These people were violent, bad-tempered, and very strong. And for hundreds of years, there were similar stories about strange creatures, half human and half animal, in the forests of Africa. The first scientific description of gorillas only appeared in the nineteenth century. And mountain gorillas were a complete mystery until a German soldier discovered them in nineteen o two.

Three.

Okapi.

The ancient Egyptians were familiar with the okapi, a strange creature from the forests of Africa. It looked like a mix between a zebra and a horse. In the nineteenth century, the famous British journalist and explorer, Henry Stanley, described the same animal. But was it all a myth? An English politician in Central Africa, Henry Johnston, was very interested in Stanley's description. He decided to find the animal. It was not easy, but in nineteen o one, Johnston finally managed to get a complete okapi skin. He sent it to London, and the scientists there were amazed. Later, they realized that the okapi is not a type of zebra. In fact, it is a relative of the giraffe.

Four.

Komodo Dragons.

During the First World War, nineteen fourteen to eighteen, a pilot crashed into the sea near Indonesia. Luckily, he could swim well. He reached one of the smaller islands. He was safe. Or was he? On the island, he discovered a horrible monster. It looked like a dragon. It was very big with short legs and a long tongue. It attacked and killed large animals for food. The pilot survived, and later, he described the monster to his friends. They laughed at him. But, in fact, the animal was real. It was a Komodo Dragon, the largest lizard in the world. In nineteen twenty-seven, London Zoo opened its new reptile house, and it included the first pair of Komodo Dragons in Europe.