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  3. According to a study published this week in the journal Ecology Letters, the quantity of birds in Europe has declined by more th

According to a study published this week in the journal Ecology Letters, the quantity of birds in Europe has declined by more th

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问题     According to a study published this week in the journal Ecology Letters, the quantity of birds in Europe has declined by more than 20 percent in the past 30 years. While there were over 2.1 billion European birds in 1980, there are now around 1. 6 billion, says study co-author Rich Inger, an ecologist at the University of Exeter in the United Kingdom.
    Most of the decline—or 90 percent—is accounted for by a shrinking population in the 36 most common species, Inger tells Newsweek. For example, throughout the continent there are now 62 percent fewer house sparrows(a common species also found in North America)than there were when Margaret Thatcher became prime minister, a decline of about 150 million animals, he says. There were also drops in the numbers of such common species as skylarks(云雀), grey partridges(灰色鹧鸪)and starlings(椋鸟).
    The decline is likely due in part to habitat loss and pesticide use. The amount of land used for agriculture in Europe has greatly increased since 1980, and there are fewer places for birds to nest and find food, Inger says. At the same time, pesticide use has gone up, knocking down the number of "pests" like insects that birds prey upon, he adds. "We don’t manage the environment in a way that’s good for birds," Inger says.
    The study looked at an immense amount of data collected by thousands of "citizen scientists" over 30 years in most countries in Europe, in "an insightful departure from conventional approaches to reviewing bird monitoring data," said Michael Wunder, an ornithologist(鸟类学家)at the University of Colorado-Denver who wasn’t involved in the study. Wunder says the study clearly shows that " population sizes are most strongly affected by land use patterns" like farming. The measures used to protect rare species, like restrictions on hunting in certain areas, are not enough to prevent a decline in common birds, he adds.
    If we want to protect birds in general, we need to change farming practices to provide more non-crop-laden land for birds, Inger says. Reducing pesticides would also help, as research has shown that areas with high pesticide use have fewer birds. "What we can do is start more environmentally friendly farming," Inger says. "We can leave wider margins on fields, get farmers to look after hedgerows(灌木篱墙), put up more bird boxes and provide places for birds to nest. "
The best title of the passage is______.
选项 A、Farming Should Be Environmentally Friendly
B、Common Birds Should Be Better Protected
C、European Birds Are Disappearing
D、New Method Is Used to Review Birds Data
答案C
解析 主旨题。文章第一段第一句就提到欧洲鸟类数量在大幅度减少，第二段说明鸟类减少数量中，普通鸟类占的比例比较大，第三、四两段分析了鸟类数量减少的原因，第五段说明了保护鸟类应该采取的措施。综合整篇文章来看，主要是围绕欧洲鸟类数量减少展开，因此[C]为答案。
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