I Went in Search of Britain's Last Rainforests - Page 60

C2 Proficiency · Multiple Choice Reading · Ready for C2 Proficiency Workbook, Macmillan

You are going to read an article about temperate rainforests. For questions 1–6, choose the answer (A, B, C or D) which you think fits best according to the text.

One of my most vivid memories is as a seven-year-old, tramping through thickets of green on the Isle of Eigg in Scotland's Inner Hebrides. Giant ferns tickled my nose, gnarled branches, dripping in silky webs of moss, grabbed at my ears, and enormous roots – like the feet of a sneaky giant – tried to trip me up. It felt so unbelievably wild. Was I behind the scenes in Jurassic Park, with a triceratops about to come charging through the undergrowth? Only recently, more than two decades later, did I learn that I was probably immersed in one of Britain's temperate rainforests. Similarly to their tropical counterparts, these are thrumming hives of plant and animal life, but found in much cooler climes, often hugging an oceanic coast. This rare ecosystem exists only in a handful of spots on Earth, including the southern tip of Chile, parts of Japan, New Zealand – and the UK. Sadly, Britain's rainforests are slowly vanishing. But a movement has been growing with the aim of identifying and protecting their last vestiges, with Guy Shrubsole, author of The Lost Rainforests of Britain, at the vanguard. I travelled to Devon to meet him, and learn more about his mission. We met at Grey Park Wood – a 15-hectare shred of rainforest around 25 minutes from Totnes. We'd barely left the car park before Guy was pointing out dog lichens, little emerald trumpets of pennywort and other plant life so typical of this rainforest environment. 'It's an incredibly special ecosystem,' he said, showing me the white canine 'teeth' that identify the dog lichen. 'There are particular flora and fauna in Britain that you only find in our rainforests.' So, in a famously rainy country, I asked, how can people tell they're in a rainforest and not just another soggy wood? 'To qualify as a temperate rainforest, it needs to get more than 1400 mm of rain a year – about twice the amount as London,' Guy explained. 'But the easiest way to tell is if you can see epiphytes: plants growing on other plants.' We'd entered the forest and suddenly everything was swaddled in a blanket of green. Knobbly grandfather oaks stooped over the whooshing River Dart, which ran alongside. From branch to root, they were cloaked in a delicate lace shawl of tamarisk moss – shaped like teeny ferns, the kind fairies would make their beds in – from which sprouted tufts of curly kale (actually, I'm told, it's tree lungwort). It was magical: life bursting from life everywhere I looked. The temperate rainforest zone once stretched across one-fifth of Britain, from Cornwall to the West of Scotland. Over the past few centuries, that spaghetti hash of mosses, lichens and liverworts has been eaten away and now just one per cent of the country is covered in the last fragments. 'It's a tragedy because we have some of the best climatic conditions for rainforests in the whole of Europe,' Guy told me. The remaining scraps run along Britain's Atlantic coast – including clumps in Cornwall, Devon, Wales and Scotland. (Could the Eigg wilderness of my childhood have been my first rainforest encounter? Quite possibly, Guy told me). In Grey Park Wood there was not another human in sight, save our little group. But the forest seemed to vibrate with life, from the earthy smell of damp leaves to the drip, drip, drip of water trickling off mossy rocks, like a child tapping a xylophone. A buzzard swooped over the treeline as Guy explained how rainforests are a fantastic place to spot rare birds like pied flycatchers and redstarts. Hundreds of years ago, Britain's rainforests would have been teeming with lynx, beaver and wild boar. That vision may not be such a distant possibility. Devon has already reintroduced beavers, with rumours that wild cats could be next. As we skirted the edge of the rainforest, a conifer plantation loomed large and Guy explained the threats facing this fragile ecosystem: 'Britain is a rainforest nation but we've sadly cut down most of them. Overgrazing by livestock is preventing those remaining fragments from regrowing and spreading.' We reached a bend in the river, our view stunted by clumps of glossy rhododendron. Guy glared at the offending shrub. 'Rhododendrons are an invasive species and very damaging to rainforests,' he said. 'Usually if I see some I'll rip it up and chuck it in the bin.' He added, 'We're passionate about protecting tropical rainforests. Why don't we see that same magic and awe on our own doorsteps and protect it? Temperate rainforests are actually rarer than the tropical kind.' The campaign to save them is a perfect reminder of the need to appreciate what's right in front of us.

the preponderance of specific plant species.

their proximity to large bodies of water.

the vibrant range of species that inhabit them.

the human impact that threatens their continued existence.

According to the writer, the world's rainforests are united by

giant ferns

gnarled branches

silky webs of moss

enormous roots

Which aspect of the writer's memory from her youth suggests she had been in a temperate rainforest?

enchanted by the vivid images she conjured up

exhilarated by the relentless sound and movement

overwhelmed by the intensity of the colours surrounding her

concerned about the increasing fragility of the rainforest ecosystem

How did the writer feel while exploring Grey Park Wood?

are likely to shrink further due to the increasingly unfavourable climate.

may soon host certain mammals that have been absent for centuries.

might have supported more creatures had conservation efforts started sooner.

are on the verge of losing their remaining bird species.

The writer predicts that Britain's rainforests ...

plant species from abroad threaten to replace native species.

too many trees are being felled by people without being replaced.

locals seem more zealous about preserving exotic ecosystems.

farm animals eat wild plants before they have a chance to develop.

Guy Shrubsole suggests that Britain's rainforests struggle to expand because ...

to introduce the reader to an ecosystem they may have been unaware of

Available as a free printable PDF worksheet with an optional answer key.

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