【明報專訊】Manx Cat — The UK

The Isle of Man (曼島) is a special region in the UK with its own government. Their cats are also different from those in the UK - and the rest of the world. The Manx cats are known for their lack of a tail. While most Manx cats are completely tailless, some Manx cats still have a stub of a tail. This is known to be caused by a genetic mutation during the species' evolution.

Kiwi — New Zealand

Sharing the name of the fruit grown in the same country, kiwi is New Zealand's symbolic bird. Although they are birds, kiwi cannot fly. There are currently five species of kiwi, four of which are classified as vulnerable, mainly caused by heavy deforestation in the areas they live in.

Komodo dragon — Indonesia

Called the king of the reptiles, the Komodo dragon is the largest living lizard on earth. They live on Komodo Island and some other islands in Indonesia. These islands are designated as protected areas for the endangered species.

■English highway﹕prefix de-

The prefix de- means ''to remove something'' or ''undo'' something.

e.g. detoxify, deconstruction, debug

■Gear up

According to the text, briefly answer the questions below.

(1) What causes the Manx cats to lose their tails?

(2) How many species of kiwi are there?

(3) Which type of animals are Komodo dragons?

(Answers on next text)

■Glossary

indigenous (adj) 土生土長的

genetic mutation (n) 基因突變

symbolic (n) 象徵性的

designate (v) 指定

[Smarties' Power English 第260期]