Glow Worms Reading Answers

Dec 2, 2022

Glow Worms Reading Answers has 13 sets of questions which the candidates are required to attempt within the time span of 20 minutes. The topic contains question types, like- choosing the correct option, and true/false/not given. Candidates should have a neat study of the passage and understand the explanation given and then opt for true/false/not given. Candidates in order for choosing the correct option, should give answers after undertanding the passage. A brief study of the IELTS reading passage is mandatory for the candidates in order to identifying keywords, and recognizing synonyms for attempting an answer.

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Reading Passge Questions

The glow-worm belongs to a family of beetles known as the Lampyridae or fireflies. The fireflies are a huge group containing over 2000 species, with new ones being discovered all the time. The feature which makes fireflies and glow-worms so appealing is their ability to produce an often dazzling display of light. The light is used by the adult fireflies as a signal to attract a mate, and each species must develop its own 'call-sign' to avoid being confused with other species glowing nearby. So within any one area each species will differ from its neighbours in some way, for example in the colour or pattern of its light, how long the pulses of light last, the interval between pulses and whether it displays in flight or from the ground.

The firefly’s almost magical light has attracted human attention for generations. It is described in an ancient Chinese encyclopaedia written over 2000 years ago by a pupil of Confucius. Fireflies often featured in Japanese and Arabian folk medicine. All over the world they have been the inspiration for countless poems, paintings and stories. In Britain, for example, there are plenty of anecdotes describing how glow-worms have been used to read by or used as emergency bicycle lamps when a cyclist's batteries have failed without warning. Early travellers in the New World came back with similar stories, of how the native people of Central America would collect a type of click beetle and release them indoors to light up their huts. Girls threaded them around their feet to illuminate the forest paths at night.

Fireflies very similar to those we see today have been found fossilised in rocks which were formed about 30 million years ago, and their ancestors were probably glowing long before then. It is impossible to be sure exactly when and where the first firefly appeared. The highest concentrations of firefly species today are to be found in the tropics of South America, which may mean either that this is where they first evolved, or simply that they prefer the conditions there.

Wherever they first arose, fireflies have since spread to almost every part of the globe. Today members of the firefly family can be found almost anywhere outside the Arctic and Antarctic circles.

As with many insects, the glow-worm's life is divided into four distinct stages: the egg, the larva (equivalent to the caterpillar of a butterfly), the pupa (or chrysalis) and the adult. The glow-worm begins its life in the autumn as a pale yellow egg. The freshly laid egg is extremely fragile but within a day its surface has hardened into a shell. The egg usually takes about 35 days to hatch, but the exact time varies according to the temperature, from about 27 days in hot weather to more than 45 days in cold weather. By the time it is due to hatch, the glow-worm's light organ is fully developed, and its glow signals that the egg will soon hatch.

After it has left the egg, the larva slowly grows from a few millimetres into the size and shape of a matchstick. The larval stage is the only time the insect can feed. The larva devotes much of its life to feeding and building up its food reserves so that as an adult it will be free to concentrate all its efforts on the task of finding a mate and reproducing. Throughout its time as a larva, approximately 15 months, the glow-worm emits a bright light. The larva's light is much fainter than the adult female's but it can still be seen more than five metres away.

In the final stage of a glow-worm's life, the larva encases itself in a pupa) skin while it changes from the simple larva to the more complex adult fly. When the adult fly emerges from the pupa the male seeks a female with whom it can mate. After mating, the female lays about 120 eggs. The adult flies have no mouth parts, cannot eat and therefore only live a few days. When people talk of seeing a glow-worm they normally mean the brightly glowing adult female.

In some countries the numbers of glow-worms have been falling. Evidence suggests that there has been a steady decrease in the British glow-worm population since the 1950s and possibly before that. Possible causes for the decline include habitat destruction, pollution and changes in climate. Thousands of acres of grassland have been built upon and glow-worm sites have become increasingly isolated from each other. The widespread use of pesticides and fertilisers may also have endangered the glow-worm. Being at the top of a food chain it is likely to absorb any pollutants eaten by the snails on which it feeds. The effect of global warming on rainfall and other weather patterns may also be playing a part in the disappearance of glow-worms. A lot more research will be needed, however, before the causes of the glow-worm's gradual decline are clear.

Although glow-worms are found wherever conditions are damp, food is in good supply and there is an over-hanging wall, they are most spectacular in caves. For more than 100 years the glow-worm caves in New Zealand have attracted millions of people from all over the world. The caves were first explored in 1887 by a local Maori chief, Tane Tinorau, and an English surveyor, Fred Mace. They built a raft and, with candles as their only light, they floated into the cave where the stream goes underground. As their eyes adjusted to the darkness they saw myriad lights reflecting off the water. Looking up they discovered that the ceiling was dotted with the lights of thousands of glow-worms. They returned many times to explore further, and on an independent trip Tane discovered the upper level of the cave and an easier access. The authorities were advised and government surveyors mapped the caves. By 1888 Tane Tinorau had opened the cave to tourists.

Solution and Explanation
Glow-Worms Reading Answers
Questions 1-6:
The reading passage has five sections labelled A-E.
Which section contains the following information?
Write the correct letter A-E in boxes 1-6 on your answer sheet.
NB You may use any letter more than once.

Q1. ___ threats to the glow-worm

Answer: D
Supporting Sentence: The widespread use of pesticides and fertilisers may also have endangered glowworms.
Keywords: pesticide, fertiliser, endangered, glow-worm
Keyword Location: Paragraph D, line 5.
Explanation: Line 5 of paragraph D explains that the glowworms may possibly be in danger or risk due to the increasing use of fertilisers and pesticides. Thus, paragraph D contains the correct answer here.

Q2. _____ ways in which glow-worms have been used

Answer: B
Supporting Sentence:In Britain, for example, there are plenty of anecdotes describing how glowworms have been used to read by or used as emergency bicycle lamps when a cyclist's batteries have failed without warning.
Keywords: used, glow-worms, batteries, anecdotes
Keyword Location: Paragraph B, line 5.
Explanation: Line 5 of paragraph B suggests that various anecdotes exist in Britain, for instance, documenting the usage of glowworms as reading lamps or as backup bicycle lights when a cyclist's batteries unexpectedly died. So, paragraph B is the correct choice here.

Q3. ____ variations in type of glow-worm

Answer: A
Supporting Sentence: The fireflies are a huge group containing over 2000 species, with new ones being discovered all the time.
Keywords: fireflies, group, 2000 species, discovered
Keyword Location: Paragraph A, line 2
Explanation: Within any given area, each species will differ in some way from its neighbours. Such as the colour or pattern of its light, the duration of its light pulses, the interval between pulses, and whether it displays in flight or from the ground.

Q4. ______ glow-worm distribution

Answer: B
Supporting Sentence: Wherever they first arose, fireflies have since spread to almost every part of the globe. Today members of the firefly family can be found almost anywhere outside the Arctic and Antarctic circles.
Keywords: fireflies, spread, world, Arctic, Antarctic Circle
Keyword Location: Paragraph B, last line
Explanation: The concluding line of paragraph B suggests that the fireflies have since spread to almost every corners of the world, regardless of where they first appeared. Modern times have made members of the firefly family almost everywhere outside of the regions of Arctic and Antarctic.

Q5. ______ glow-worms becoming an attraction

Answer: E
Supporting Sentence: For more than 100 years the glow-worm caves in New Zealand have attracted millions of people from all over the world.
Keywords: New Zealand, attracted, people, world, million
Keyword Location: Paragraph E, line 2.
Explanation: The second line of paragraph E explains that millions of people all across the globe got attracted by the caves of glow-worms located in New Zealand since more than the years of 100. Therefore, paragraph E is the right choice here.

Q6. ______ the life-cycle of a glow-worm

Answer: C
Supporting Sentence: As with many insects, the glow worm's life is divided into four distinct stages: the egg, the larva (equivalent to the caterpillar of a butterfly), and the pupa (or chrysalis) and the adult.
Keywords: egg, larva, pupa, adult. Glow-worm, life, stages
Keyword Location: Paragraph C, line 1.
Explanation: The beginning sentence of paragraph C states that the the lifecycle of glow worm has been also divided into four different stages alike other insects. It begins with the development of the egg, then it gets converted into the larva, which is similar to a butterfly, after that the chrysalis is formed and then the adult. Hence, paragraph C is an appropriate location for the passage.

Questions 7-13:
Do the following statements agree with the information given in the reading passage.
In boxes 7-13 on your answer sheet, write
TRUE if the statement agrees with the information
FALSE if the statement contradicts the information
NOT GIVEN if there is no information on this

Q7. Scientists have only recently been able to list the exact number of glow-worm species.

Answer: Not Given
Explanation: No relevant information regarding this context is available i n the passage.

Q8. The first fireflies appeared 30 million years ago.

Answer: False
Supporting Sentence: Fireflies very similar to those we see today have been found fossilised in rocks which were formed about 30 million years ago, and their ancestors were probably glowing long before then.
Keywords: Fireflies, 30 million years, fossilised, ancestors
Keyword Location: Paragraph B, line 7.
Explanation: Line 7 of paragraph B explaining that the very modern-looking fireflies have been discovered being preserved in rocks that formed around 30 million years ago, although their predecessors were presumably shining much earlier. Thus, the above statement is regarded as a False one.

Q9. Glow-worm populations are decreasing faster in some countries than in others.

Answer: Not Given
Explanation: No similar information regarding the above statement has been provided in the passage, proving the statement as an irrelevant one.

Q10. Heat affects the production of glow-worm larvae.

Answer: True
Supporting Sentence: The egg usually takes about 35 days to hatch, but the exact time varies according to the temperature, from about 27 days in hot weather to more than 45 days in cold weather.
Keywords: egg, hatch, temperature, hot weather
Keyword Location: Paragraph C, line 4
Explanation: Line 4 of paragrpah c suggests that the egg of the glow-worm takes a time span of 35 days to emerge, although the proper time of the emegence of the egg varies in accordance with the weather. It varies from 27 days in a hot temperature to more than 45 days in a cold temperature. Thus, the above statement is a True one.

Q11. Adulthood is the longest stage of a glow-worm's life.

Answer: False
Supporting Sentence: The adult flies have no mouthparts, cannot eat and therefore only live a few days. When people talk of seeing a glow-worm they normally mean the brightly glowing adult female.
Keywords: adult, few days, no mouth part, cannot eat
Keyword Location: Paragraph C, line 13.
Explanation: Line number 13 of paragraph C states that the lifespan of the adult flies is very short as they have no mouthparts and are unbale to eat. The people considering about the shiny adult female worm by talking about their viewing of a glow-worm. Thus, the above statemet is False.

Q12. The exact reason why glow-worm numbers are decreasing is unknown.

Answer: True
Supporting Sentence: A lot more research will be needed, however, before the causes of the glowworm's gradual decline are clear.
Keywords: research, causes, decline, glow-warm
Keyword Location: Paragraph D, last line
Explanation: The concluding line of paragraph D explaining that however, the impact of climate change on precipitation and other weather patterns may be a factor in the extinction of glowworms. Climate change, pollution, and habitat destruction are all likely causes. Moreover, the narrator states that in order to reach the causes of the extinction of glow-worms, a lot more number of research should be implemented by the researchers. Therefore, the above statement is considered as a True one.

Q13. Glowworms are usually found in wet areas.

Answer: True
Supporting Sentence: Although glowworms are found wherever conditions are damp, food is in good supply and there is an overhanging wall, they are most spectacular in caves.
Keywords: glow-worms, damp, found, caves
Keyword Location: Paragraph E, line 1.
Explanation: The beginning sentence of paragraph E suggests that the glow-worms are mostly availaible in caves as they are found in the place of wet areas and where the food is availaible in a better condition. Thus, the above statement is True.