|
课时作业15 Canada—“The True North” .阅读理解 (2017·湖北省黄石市示范三校元月联考) One baobab tree in South Africa is so large that a popular pub has been established inside its trunk. Many local cultures consider baobab trees to be sacred (神圣的). Others use them for their nutritious fruits, eatable leaves and beautiful flowers. But the size has not necessarily protected them. According to research published in Biological Conservation, two of Madagascar's baobab tree species will lose much of their available habitat in the next 70 years. One species may not survive to the next century. Madagascar is home to seven of the world's eight baobab species, six of which can be found nowhere else. The study—by scientists from the French agricultural research center CIRAD—relied on satellite images and field work to develop population estimates and distribution models for three baobab species. All three trees are currently listed as endangered on the IUCN Red List. The study suggests that two of the species should now be reclassified as seriously endangered. One of those species, A. perrieri, had the lowest current population, with just 99 trees observed during ten years of field study. The researchers estimate that climate change will decrease the habitat of this species from about 21,000 square kilometers today to just over 6,500 square kilometers in 2080. | 
