Page 44 - Grasp English B1+ (Workbook)

4 Senses and Emotions

Writing

A. Discuss with a partner.

bat snake shark bee pigeon

1. What do you know about the animals above?
2. What senses do you think are particularly important for them?

B. Do you think these sentences are true (T) or false (F)?
1. When a butterfly lands on a flower, it uses its feet to taste the nectar.
2. Many types of fish can sense changes in water pressure, allowing them to feel other creatures
moving near to them.
3. Starfish have sensors at the end of their arms, which lets them “see” the difference between light
and dark.
4. Mice can smell carbon dioxide, an odourless gas.

As blind as a bat – really?

We’ve all heard the phrase “He’s as blind as a bat.”, but in fact, it’s quite
inaccurate. Bats have very good eyesight; however, as they hunt at night,
they use a different sense to help them find insects.
Whilst humans only really have five senses – sight, hearing, taste, touch and
smell – the animal kingdom is filled with creatures which use other senses to
help them survive. For example, bats use echolocation to help them hunt. To
do this, they make a high-pitched noise, often through their noses. When the
sound hits an object, such as an insect, it bounces back to the bat, allowing
the bat to know in which direction and how far away the insect is.
Another example of a superhuman sense is infrared. Many snakes are able
to sense where warm-blooded animals are by using their heat-seeking
sense. At the other end of the spectrum, we have ultraviolet, and some
flowers have ultraviolet patterns which are designed to attract bees.
Isn’t the animal kingdom fascinating?

C. Discuss with a partner.
1. Which animals from exercise A are mentioned in the text, and what special senses do they have?
2. What do these other animal similes mean? How accurate do you think they are?

a. as dead as a dodo b. as proud as a peacock c. as stubborn as a mule
d. as slow as a snail e. as bald as a coot

D. Write a magazine article (120–180 words) about an animal. Include details about any special senses
it uses as well as information about where it lives, what it eats and what it’s like.

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