This vocabulary should help you with the listening. Work in pairs. Make sure that you know the meanings of the words. Share your knowledge and use a dictionary.
buzzard bird of prey to breed chick fledgling
scarce widespread persecution population surge
adaptability rodents seagull
Where is Fife?
Activity 2
Listen to Sam Broomfield, a wildlife expert, talking about nature and answer the questions.
Take notes under the following headings. Listen twice.
The return of the buzzard to Fife.
Buzzards near Sam’s home.
Reasons for the recovery in the number of buzzards.
The buzzard’s prey.
Continued persecution
Nesting and breeding.
Source: Broomfield, K., Masters of the Air, Kingdom , Issue 4 (NB Media 2004) p. 26.
Activity 3 Now look at these extracts from the listening. Look at the underlined vocabulary. Use the context and a dictionary to work out the meanings of the words. Then answer the questions.
Extract 1
They breed in a small wood close by, and once the chicks have fledged, the air is filled with their constant, almost seagull-like, mewing. In spring courting pairsprovide magnificent aerobatic displays as they roll and tumble together, often soaring higher and higher into the sky until they are mere specks, only the plaintive calls belying their presence.
True or false:
The chicks make noises like seagulls as soon as they come out of their eggs.
The only way you are aware of the pairs of buzzards is hearing their cries.
Extract 2
So, what is the reason behind this astonishing recovery? The main impetus has been a more enlightened attitude towards our wildlife, with an easing of the persecutionof the bird providing the catalyst for a population surge. The increase has also been helped by the buzzard’s sheer adaptability and catholic tastes.
True or false:
The increase in the numbers of buzzards is due to the fact the people are now more aware of nature.
Buzzards have a very limited diet.
Extract 3
When disturbed, the buzzard rises with a low, lumbering flight but once properly on the wing it is an aerial master, graceful and easy. It sails moth-like with its rounded wings effortlessly playing and working the air currents. Buzzards are not secretive birds and at any time of the year their habit of soaring means that it is unlikely that any birds will be missed for long if they are present in a particular area.
True or false:
The buzzard is graceful from the moment it takes off.
Buzzards are very visible and therefore it is easy to detect their presence in an area.
Activity 4
Listen to the beginning of the extract again and fill these spaces in the tape script:
The return of the buzzard must ___________ as one of the most remarkable ___________ success stories of our times. Even as recently as the early 1980s the bird was ___________ in Fife and the rest of lowland Scotland, but now it is one of our ___________ birds of prey. From my West Fife home I see buzzards on a daily ___________.
Activity 5 Discuss:
What other animals have been or are under threat?
What is the best way to protect them?
Homework task:
You are reading the local newspaper when you see the following:
Threat to East Lothian Industrial Site Local councillor, Jeremy Patel, today confirmed the possibility that the new retail park near Tranent, which was to be the site of 20 retail outlets and a source of employment for up to 400 local people, might not now go ahead.
He said, “We know this is important for the economy of the area, but we have to consider the environmental implications in this area of natural beauty.” He stressed that no firm decision had yet been made and that councillors would listen to opinions from everyone in the community.
Write a formal letter to the councillor in response to the article (300-350 words).
