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IELTS® Academic Reading Practice 33

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This reading practice simulates one part of the IELTS General Reading test. You should spend about twenty minutes on it. Read the passage and answer questions 27-40.

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Section AAs animals and plants have adapted to suit the environments of earth’s specific biomes, most have evolved in ways which allow them to take advantage of their surroundings in order to get what they need. These adaptations themselves may cause some species to be more successful than others ...
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Questions 27-33
The reading passage has seven sections, A-G.

Choose the correct heading for sections A-G from the list of headings below.

Write the correct number i-vii in boxes 27-33 on your answer sheet.

List of Headings
  1. Coastal habitats are home for many species
  2. Marine mammals’ adaptations for oxygen preservation
  3. The adaptive leaves and stems of marine plants
  4. The roots of marine plants differ from land plants
  5. The unique sizes and shapes of marine mammals
  6. Marine mammals’ other underwater adaptations
  7. Fish adapt gills for underwater respiration

27. Section A

28. Section B

29. Section C

30. Section D

31. Section E

32. Section F

33. Section G

The answer is i. Section A discusses coastal regions being habitats for numerous unique species. The text states: "Coastal regions are one such habitat, and are likely home to the greatest number of unique species of organisms on earth." This directly links to heading (i) "Coastal habitats are home for many species." Therefore, heading (i) is the most suitable for Section A.

Associated Text:
Coastal regions are one such habitat, and are likely home to the greatest number of unique species of organisms on earth.

The answer is vii. Section B focuses on how fish adapt gills for underwater respiration. The section details the adaptation of gills for breathing underwater: "For fish, the adaptation of gills allow them to essentially breathe underwater via these specialized organs on either side of their heads." This matches heading (vii) "Fish adapt gills for underwater respiration."

Associated Text:
For fish, the adaptation of gills allow them to essentially breathe underwater via these specialized organs on either side of their heads.

The answer is ii. Section C discusses how marine mammals have special adaptations to spend most of their lives underwater and minimize time at the surface by using oxygen efficiently. This perfectly matches heading (ii) "Marine mammals’ adaptations for oxygen preservation." The passage says: "They minimize time spent at the surface of the water by using oxygen much more efficiently than land mammals."

Associated Text:
They minimize time spent at the surface of the water by using oxygen much more efficiently than land mammals.

The answer is v. Section D describes how saltwater allows for enormous body sizes in marine animals due to buoyancy and lack of land-based gravitational force requirements. It notes: "This has given enormous bodied animals, like the blue whale or giant squid, the opportunity to reach their huge sizes." This aligns with heading (v) "The unique sizes and shapes of marine mammals."

Associated Text:
This has given enormous bodied animals, like the blue whale or giant squid, the opportunity to reach their huge sizes.

The answer is vi. Section E details adaptations of marine mammals to their specific environments, such as blubber and antifreeze in blood, which are described as "other adaptations." This fits heading (vi) "Marine mammals’ other underwater adaptations." The relevant line is: "marine animals display a variety of other adaptations to their specific environment."

Associated Text:
marine animals display a variety of other adaptations to their specific environment.

The answer is iii. Section F discusses the adaptations of marine plants, focusing on their leaves and stems: "their stems and leaves have adapted to be flexible, thick and rubbery." This directly fits heading (iii) "The adaptive leaves and stems of marine plants."

Associated Text:
their stems and leaves have adapted to be flexible, thick and rubbery.

The answer is iv. Section G explains that the roots of marine plants differ from those of land plants: "marine plants roots’ also function specifically for their watery environments." It discusses how the roots keep the plant anchored, which fits heading (iv) "The roots of marine plants differ from land plants."

Associated Text:
marine plants roots’ also function specifically for their watery environments.

Questions 34-38
Complete the sentences below.

Choose NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS from the passage for each answer.

Write your answers in 34-38 on your answer sheet.

By using their , marine animals, such as fish and sharks, have adapted to draw oxygen from water.

Marine mammals withstand high amounts of in their muscles.

Buoyancy underwater supports sea animals’ huge bodies without the need for sturdy to do so.

“Hydrodynamic” sea animals have body plans that make their , as minimal as possible, allowing them to swim faster.

For , the roots mostly serve the purpose of taking water and nutrients out of the soil and up to their leaves.

The answer is gills. According to Section B, the passage states: "For fish, the adaptation of gills allow them to essentially breathe underwater via these specialized organs on either side of their heads." This makes it clear that gills are the adaptation used by marine animals such as fish and sharks to draw oxygen from water.

Associated Text:
For fish, the adaptation of gills allow them to essentially breathe underwater via these specialized organs on either side of their heads.

The answer is lactic acids. In Section C, it is mentioned: "their muscles are able to tolerate much higher levels of lactic acids." This demonstrates that marine mammals can withstand high amounts of lactic acids in their muscles.

Associated Text:
their muscles are able to tolerate much higher levels of lactic acids

The answer is skeletons. Section D notes: "Marine animals are not limited by the gravitational forces exerted on land animals, as they do not require strong skeletons to support their mass." This shows that buoyancy supports sea animals’ huge bodies without the need for sturdy skeletons.

Associated Text:
Marine animals are not limited by the gravitational forces exerted on land animals, as they do not require strong skeletons to support their mass.

The answer is water resistance. Section D states: "the shapes marine animals’ bodies reduce water resistance by being 'hydrodynamic.'" This indicates that the body shapes of hydrodynamic animals minimize water resistance and allow them to swim faster.

Associated Text:
the shapes marine animals’ bodies reduce water resistance by being “hydrodynamic.”

The answer is land plants. In Section G, the passage says: "the roots of land plants exist mostly to draw water up to their leaves" and that they take water and nutrients from the soil. This shows that these functions pertain to land plants.

Associated Text:
the roots of land plants exist mostly to draw water up to their leaves

Questions 39-40
Choose the correct letter, A, B, C or D.

Write your answers in boxes 39-40 on your answer sheet.

39. What makes marine mammals spend less time at the surface than land mammals?

40. What characteristic uniquely distinguishes sea plants from land plants?

The answer is C. (A)(B)(D) are distractors. The passage in Section C says: "They minimize time spent at the surface of the water by using oxygen much more efficiently than land mammals." This clearly supports option (C), stating that efficient oxygen usage allows marine mammals to spend less time at the surface compared to land mammals.

Associated Text:
They minimize time spent at the surface of the water by using oxygen much more efficiently than land mammals.

The answer is C. (A)(B)(D) are incorrect. The passage in Section G states: "The roots of marine plants keep them anchored to the seafloor through structures called 'keepfasts.'" This uniquely distinguishes sea plants from land plants, because land plant roots mostly draw water, not anchor the plant. Therefore, (C) is correct.

Associated Text:
The roots of marine plants keep them anchored to the seafloor through structures called 'keepfasts.'

Answer Sheet
1
N/A
2
N/A
3
N/A
4
N/A
5
N/A
6
N/A
7
N/A
8
N/A
9
N/A
10
N/A
11
N/A
12
N/A
13
N/A
14
N/A
15
N/A
16
N/A
17
N/A
18
N/A
19
N/A
20
N/A
21
N/A
22
N/A
23
N/A
24
N/A
25
N/A
26
N/A
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
Score Summary
0 / 1
Multiple Choice
Matching Sentence Endings
Note Completion
Table Completion
Flow Chart Completion
Summary Completion
Multiple Selection
Short Answer
Matching Headings
Matching Features
Matching Information
Identifying Information
Identifying Viewer Claims
Sentence Completion
Diagram Labelling
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Tips to improve your reading speed
To get a high score on the IELTS reading section, you need to have a fast reading speed. To have a fast reading speed, you need to improve your vocabulary and practice dissecting sentences. One strategy to dissect a sentence is to look for the subject and verb of the sentence. Finding the subject and verb will help you better understand the main idea of said sentence. Keep in mind, a common feature of a IELTS reading passage is to join strings of ideas to form long compound sentences. This produces large chunks that students have a hard time absorbing. Do not get overwhelmed by its length, just look for the subject and verb, the rest of the ideas will flow.

Keep in mind, having a slow reading speed makes skimming or scanning a reading passage more difficult. The process of quickly skimming through a reading passage for specific keywords or main ideas is a requirement for you to employ successful reading strategies to improve your IELTS reading score. In other words, skimming and scanning are critical skills to ensure you complete all questions in the allotted time frame.
IELTS Reading Strategies
Once you can read and comprehend a passage with a rate of, at least, 220 words per minute, you'll be ready to start implementing our strategies. All too often, students spend too much time reading the passages and not enough time answering the questions. Here is a step by step guide for tackling the reading section.

  1. Step 1: Read questions first

    One of the most common mistakes that candidates make when approaching the reading exam is reading every single word of the passages. Although you can practice for the exam by reading for pleasure, "reading blindly" (reading without any sense of what the questions will ask) will not do you any favors in the exam. Instead, it will hurt your chances for effectively managing your time and getting the best score.

    The main reason to read the questions first is because the type of question may determine what you read in the passage or how you read it. For example, some question types will call for the "skimming" technique, while others may call for the "scanning" technique.

    It is important to answer a set of questions that are of the same question type. You'll need to determine which question type you want to tackle first. A good strategy would be to start with the easier question type and move on to more difficult question types later. The Easiest question types are the ones where you spend less time reading. For example, the Matching Heading question type is an easier one because you only need to find the heading that best describes the main idea of a paragraph. An example of a difficult question type would be Identifying Information. For this question type, you'll need to read each paragraph to find out if each statement is TRUE, FALSE, or NOT GIVEN according to the passage.

    Here is a table that lists the difficulty levels for each question type. Use this table as a reference when choosing which question type you want to tackle first.

    Difficulty level Question Type
    Easy Sentence Completion
    Short answer
    Medium Matching Features
    Multiple choice
    Matching Headings
    Summary, Table, Flow-Chart Completion
    Difficult Matching Sentence Endings
    Matching Information
    Identifying Information (TRUE/FALSE/NOT GIVEN)
    Identifying Viewer's claims (YES/NO/NOT GIVEN)

  2. Step 2: Read for an objective

    After you've read the questions for the passage, you will be able to read for an objective. What does this mean? For example, if you come across a question that includes the year "1896", you can make a note of when this year comes up in the text, using it to answer the question later on. There are two reading techniques that will help you stay on track with reading for an objective. The first one, skimming, is best defined as reading fast in order to get the "gist", or general idea, or a passage. With this technique, you are not stopping for any unfamiliar words or looking for specific details. The second technique, scanning, is best defined as reading for specific information. With this technique, you are not reading for the overall gist, but rather, specific information. Notice how each of these techniques has a specific objective in mind. This will help you find information more quickly.

  3. Step 3: Take notes

    As you're reading for an objective, you should also be making notes on the margins of the passage, placing stars next to key information, or underlining things that you believe will help you answer the various questions. This will make it easier for you to check back when you are asked certain things in the questions. Choose whichever note-taking system is right for you - just make sure you do it!

  4. Step 4: Answer wisely

    After you've read the questions, read the passage, and have taken any appropriate notes, you you should have located the part of the text where you where you need to read carefully. Then just read carefully and think critically to determine the correct answer.

IELTS Reading Question Types

The IELTS reading test contains many different question types:

Matching HeadingsIELTS Reading Lesson: Matching Headings
Matching InformationIELTS Reading Lesson: Matching Information
Matching FeaturesIELTS Reading Lesson: Matching Features
Summary CompletionIELTS Reading Lesson: Summary Completion
Identifying InformationIELTS Reading Lesson: Identifying Information
Identifying Writer's claimsIELTS Reading Lesson: Identifying Writer's claims
Multiple ChoiceIELTS Reading Lesson: Multiple Choice
Short AnswerIELTS Reading Lesson: Short Answer
Match Sentence EndingIELTS Reading Lesson: Match Sentence Ending
Sentence CompletionIELTS Reading Lesson: Sentence Completion
Table CompletionIELTS Reading Lesson: Table Completion
 
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