RC 2

Measuring more than five feet tall and ten feet long, the

Javan rhinoceros is often called the rarest large mammal

on earth. None exist in zoos. Like the Indian rhino, the

Javan has only one horn; African and Sumatran rhinos

have two. While the Javan rhino habitat once extended

across southern Asia, now there are fewer than one

hundred of the animals in Indonesia and under a dozen in

Vietnam. Very little is known about Javan rhinos because

they lead secretive and solitary lives in remote jungles.

Until recently, scientists debated whether females even

have horns, and most scientific work has had to rely on

DNA garnered from dung.

The near extinction of the Javan rhino is the direct result

of human actions. For centuries, farmers, who favored

the same habitat, viewed them as crop eating pests and

shot them on sight. During the colonial period, hunters

slaughtered thousands. Now, human efforts to save them

may well prove futile. The Vietnamese herd is probably

doomed, as too few remain to maintain the necessary

genetic variation. Rhinos from Java cannot supplement

the Vietnamese numbers because in the millions of years

since Indonesia separated from the mainland, the two

groups have evolved into separate sub-species. In

Indonesia, the rhinos are protected on the Ujung Kulon

peninsula, which is unsettled by humans, and still have

sufficient genetic diversity to have a chance at survival.

Ironically, however, the lack of human disturbance allows

mature forests to replace the shrubby vegetation the

animals prefer. Thus, human benevolence may prove little

better for these rhinos than past human maltreatment

.

1. Which of the following can be inferred from the

passage?

< Javan rhinos are one of the most endangered animals

on the planet.

< More is known about the genetics of the Javan rhino

than is known about its mating patterns.

< Hunters killed more Javan rhinos in Vietnam than in

Indonesia.

< Most animal extinctions are the result of human

actions.

< Genetic diversity is the most important factor for the

survival of a species.

2. The author's attitude toward current human efforts

to save the Javan rhino can best be described as

< optimistic and worthwhile

< pointless and doomed

< idealistic but profitable

< problematic and ironic

< confused but heroic

3. The author mentions that the Javan rhino has only

one horn in order to do which of the following?

< explain why it is closer to extinction than the African

rhino

< contrast it to the number of horns that the Indian

rhino has

< demonstrate its evolution into a separate sub-species

< describe the features of the animal

< contrast it to the number of horns that females have

4. The purpose of the first paragraph is to

< discuss the different types of rhinoceroses that

populate the world

< describe the ways in which human actions have

brought the Javan rhino close to extinction

< outline the few known facts about the Javan rhino

< discuss the steps taken to save the Javan rhino

< highlight the differences between the sub-species of

Javan rhinos in Vietnam and Indonesia

5. According to the passage, which of the following best

explains why the number of Javan rhinos in Vietnam

cannot be increased by additions from those in the

Ujung Kulon peninsula?

< The Indonesian Javan rhinos constitute a separate

sub-species.

< The Javan rhinos cannot swim to Vietnam and have

no land route available.

< Neither Vietnam nor Indonesia has the funds for such

a project.

< Javan rhinos in the Ujung Kulon peninsula are almost

impossible to capture.

< Terrorist activity in Indonesia has made such a project

too dangerous to attempt.

6. The author states that which of the following was

most responsible for the near extinction of the Javan

rhino?

< farmers shooting them on sight

< the separation of Indonesia from the mainland

< hunters slaughtering thousands

< current human efforts to save them

< the cumulative effect of many past human activities