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READING PASSAGE 2

You should spend about 20 minutes on questions 14-26, which are based on Reading Passage 2 on pages 6 and 7.

Bristlecone Pines

A On the dry, windswept mountain tops of the Great Basin in the western United States, at altitudes of over 3000 m grow the bristlecone pines (Pinus longaeva, Pinus aristata). The bristlecone has adjusted to places on earth that no other tree wants to inhabit, and in these harsh environments has flourished. Bristlecones don't grow very tall. 18.3 m at the most, but usually much less, while the girth of the largest one has been measured at 11.2 m. What makes bristlecone pines truly remarkable is their longevity: their average age is over 1000 years. With an individual known as Methuselah dated at 4723 years, it is the earth's oldest living tree. Yet the extraordinary age of bristlecone pines was not known about until the 1950s.

B The discovery of their great age came about through the work of dendrochronologists—scientists who study tree rings. In the 1950s, a researcher named Edmund Schulman was conducting fieldwork in the White Mountains of California, searching for trees that could extend the tree-ring chronology further back in time. He collected core samples from what appeared to be unremarkable, gnarled old trees clinging to rocky slopes. When he returned to his laboratory and analysed the samples, he was astonished to find that some of these trees were over 4000 years old. Subsequent expeditions revealed even older specimens, including Methuselah, which was already ancient when the pyramids of Egypt were being built. >> 🔥 Form đăng kí giải đề thi thật IELTS 4 kĩ năng kèm bài giải bộ đề 100 đề PART 2 IELTS SPEAKING quý đang thi (update hàng tuần) từ IELTS TUTOR

C The secret to the bristlecone's extraordinary longevity lies in its adaptation to extreme conditions. The trees grow at high altitudes where the soil is thin and poor in nutrients, where temperatures fluctuate wildly, and where fierce winds constantly batter the landscape. In such conditions, competition from other plant species is virtually nonexistent. The trees grow slowly, producing dense, resinous wood that is highly resistant to rot, insects, and fungal attack. Even when a tree dies, its wood may remain standing for thousands of years, preserved by the cold, dry climate. This has allowed scientists to build a continuous tree-ring chronology extending back nearly 9000 years, matching living trees with dead wood to create an unbroken record of climate history.

D Bristlecone pines exhibit a phenomenon known as sectorial dying. As a tree ages, parts of its circulatory system may become damaged or blocked. Rather than dying entirely, the tree responds by allowing sections of its trunk to die off while maintaining living tissue in a narrow strip of bark connecting roots to living branches. This strategy allows the tree to survive for millennia despite the gradual loss of living tissue. Some ancient bristlecones consist of little more than a thin ribbon of living bark snaking up a weathered trunk of dead wood, yet they continue to produce cones and reproduce successfully.

E The wood of bristlecone pines is extraordinarily dense and rich in resins. When cut or broken, it exudes a sweet, fragrant smell. These resins act as natural preservatives, protecting the wood from decay organisms that would otherwise break it down. The combination of resinous wood and arid environment means that dead bristlecone wood can persist on the landscape for thousands of years, providing scientists with a valuable archive of environmental information. By comparing the width and density of annual growth rings, researchers can reconstruct past climate conditions, including temperature, precipitation, and even volcanic eruptions that caused temporary cooling.

F Despite their resilience, bristlecone pines face threats in the modern era. Climate change is altering the conditions to which they are so exquisitely adapted. Warmer temperatures at high elevations are allowing other plant species, as well as insects and pathogens, to move into areas that were once too harsh for them. Bark beetles, which have devastated forests elsewhere in North America, have begun to appear in bristlecone stands. Wildfire, naturally rare in these sparsely vegetated mountain tops, may become more frequent as conditions become warmer and drier. Scientists are monitoring these changes closely, concerned that the oldest living organisms on Earth may be entering a period of unprecedented stress.

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G The bristlecone pines hold a special place in the cultural and scientific imagination. For dendrochronologists, they provide a calendar of the past, precisely dated and annually resolved. For climatologists, they offer insights into natural climate variability before the influence of human activity. For visitors who make the journey to the high mountain groves, they inspire wonder and humility. To stand before a tree that was already ancient when classical civilisations rose and fell is to confront the deep time of geological processes. The bristlecone pines remind us that life can persist, against all odds, in the most unforgiving of environments, and that the greatest age is not always found in the most comfortable circumstances.

Questions 14–18

Reading Passage 2 has seven sections, A–G.
Which section contains the following information?
Write the correct letter, A–G, in boxes 14–18 on your answer sheet.

NB You may use any letter more than once.

1. a description of how the great age of bristlecone pines was first discovered

2. an explanation of the strategy that allows bristlecone pines to survive partial damage

3. mention of the cultural significance of bristlecone pines for human visitors

4. details about the physical dimensions and growth limitations of bristlecone pines

5. a reference to modern threats facing bristlecone pine populations

Questions 19–22

Complete the sentences below.
Choose ONE WORD ONLY from the passage for each answer.
Write your answers in boxes 19–22 on your answer sheet. >> 🔥 IELTS TUTOR gợi ý tham khảo CẦN VIẾT & THU ÂM BAO NHIÊU BÀI ĐỂ ĐẠT 8.0 SPEAKING & 7.0 WRITING?

1. Bristlecone pines grow at altitudes of over __________ metres in the Great Basin.

2. The oldest living bristlecone pine is named __________ and is over 4700 years old.

3. The wood of bristlecone pines is dense and __________, which protects it from rot and insects.

4. By studying tree rings, scientists can reconstruct past climate conditions, including temperature and __________.

Questions 23–26

Do the following statements agree with the information given in Reading Passage 2?
In boxes 23–26 on your answer sheet, write

TRUE if the statement agrees with the information
FALSE if the statement contradicts the information
NOT GIVEN if there is no information on this

1. Edmund Schulman was searching for trees to extend the tree-ring chronology when he discovered the age of bristlecone pines.

2. Bristlecone pines grow rapidly because of the nutrient-rich soil in their habitat.

3. Dead bristlecone wood decomposes quickly due to the moist climate.

4. Climate change may allow bark beetles to threaten bristlecone pine populations.

14. B

15. D

16. G

17. A

18. F

19. 3000

20. Methuselah

21. resinous

22. precipitation

23. TRUE

24. FALSE

25. FALSE

26. TRUE
 

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