阅读训练
　　Part IV Reading Comprehension(Reading in Depth) (25 minutes)

　　Section A

　　Of 2, 000 commercial beekeepers in the United States about half migrate. Migratory beekeeping is nothing new. The ancient Egyptians moved clay hives, probably on rafts, down the Nile to follow the bloom and nectar flow as it moved toward Cairo. In the 1880s North American beekeepers experimented with the same idea. moving bees on barges along the Mississippi lighter, wooden hives kept falling into the water, Other keepers tried the railroad and horse drawn wagons, but that didn't prove practical. Not until the 1920s when cars and trucks became affordable and roads improved, did migratory beekeeping begin to catch on.

　　For the Californian beekeeper, the pollination season begins in February. At this time. the beehives are in particular demand by farmers who have almond groves; they need two hives an acre. For the three-week long bloom, beekeepers can hire out their hives for $ 32 each.

　　By early March it is time to move the bees. It can take up to seven nights to pack the 4,000 or so hives that a beekeeper may own. These are not moved in the middle of the day because too many of the bees would end up homeless. But at night, the hives are stacked onto wooden pallets, back-to-back in sets of four, and lifted onto a truck. It is not necessary to wear gloves or a beekeeper's veil because the hives are not being opened and the bees should remain relatively quiet. Just in case some are still lively, bees can be pacified with a few puffs of smoke blown into each hive's narrow entrance.

　　In their new location, the beekeeper will pay the farmer to allow his bees to feed in such places as orange groves. The honey produced here is fragrant and sweet and can be sold by the beekeepers. To encourage the bees to produce as' much honey as possible during this period, the beekeepers open the hives and stack extra boxes called supers on top. These temporary hive extensions contain frames of empty comb for the bees to fill with honey. In the brood chamber below, the bees will stash honey to eat later. To prevent the queen from crawling up to the top and laying eggs, a screen can be inserted between the brood chamber and the supers.

　　Three weeks later the honey can be gathered. Foul smelling chemicals are often used to irritate the bees and drive them down into the hive's bottom boxes, leaving the honey-filled supers more or less bee free. These can then be pulled off the hive. They are heavy with honey and may weigh up to 90 pounds each. The supers are then taken to a warehouse where the extracting process takes place.

　　After this, approximately a quarter of the hives weakened by disease, mites or an ageing or dead queen, will have to be replaced. To create new colonies, a healthy double hive, teeming with bees, can be separated into two boxes. One half will hold the queen and a young, already mated queen can be put in the other half, to make two hives from one. By the time the flowers bloom, the new queens will be laying eggs, filling each hive with young worker bees. The beekeeper's family will then migrate with them to their summer location.

　　47. First attempts at migratory beekeeping in America were ______.

　　48. In March, beekeepers prepare for migration at night when the hives are ______ and the bees are generally tranquil.

　　40. They transport their hives to orange groves where farmers ______ beekeepers for placing them on their land.

　　50. Where do the bees keep honey for themselves to cat later?

　　51. To create new colonies, what will beekeepers do with the hives in good condition?

阅读答案及解析

　　Part Ⅳ Reading Comprehension (Reading in Depth)

　　Section A

　　47. unsuccessful

　　48. full

　　49. charge

　　50. In the brood chambers./In the bottom of the hives.

　　51. They will be separated/split into two boxes.

　　Part Ⅳ Reading Comprehension(Reading in Depth)

　　Section A

　　47.文章第一段讲到迁徙式养蜂的历史时作者提到“In the 1880s North American beekeepers experimented with the same idea，moving bees on barges along the Mississippi lighter， wooden hives kept falling into the water，Other keepers tried the railroad and horse drawn wagons，but that didn't prove practical.”，可见19世纪80年代美国人就开始尝试迁徙式养蜂。但用驳船运输蜂箱不成功;用火车或马车则不实际。因此，早期的尝试都是不成功的。答案可以概括为“unsuccessful”。

　　48.由第三段第二、三句“These are not moved in the middle of the day because too many of the bees would end up homeless.But at night，the hives are stacked onto wooden pallets，back- to-back in sets of four，and lifted onto a truck.”可见晚上运送蜂箱是因为白天蜜蜂飞出去采蜜，如果蜂箱被运走，蜜蜂就无法回到蜂箱中了(end up homeless)。稍加推测可知，晚上蜜蜂都回巢了，蜂箱是满的。因此，答案是“full”或者其他含义相近的表达。

　　49.从第四段可知从橘林中采的蜜香甜可口，可以出售。所以养蜂人是要向农场主付费的。“In their new location，the beekeeper will pay the farmer to allow his bees to feed in such places as orange groves.”这一句中“beekeeper”是主语，宾语是“the farmer”，动词用“pay”。题目中主语和宾语位置互换了，因此动词要变成“向……收费”。故正确答案为“charge”。

　　50.第四段倒数第二句“In the brood chamber below，the bees will stash honey to eat later.”中的“stash”就是“keep”的意思。因此，答案为“In the brood chambers.”。此段讲到蜂箱的结构分成三个部分，最上边是为了让蜜蜂多采蜜而增加的“临时扩展部分”，被称为“supers”，最下面就是蜜蜂。自己储藏蜂蜜的地方，“brood chambers”;为了防止蜂后爬上来产卵，中间加了一层隔板，“screen”。因此，“brood chambers”位于蜂箱的最下层。故答案担可以是“In the bottom of the hives.”。

　　51.由文章最后一段第二句“To create new colonies，a healthy double hive，teeming with bees， can be separated into two boxes.”可知养蜂人是把状况良好的双层蜂箱分成两个蜂箱。因此，正确答案为“They will be separated/ split into two boxes.”。