Passage 26

By far the most common snake in Britain is the adder.In Scotland, in fact, there are no other snakes at all.The adder is also the only British snake with a poisonous bite.It can he found almost anywhere, but prefers sunny hillsides and rough open country, including high

round.In Ireland there are no snakes at all.

Most people regard snake bites as a fatal misfortune, but not all bites are serious, and very few are fatal.Sometimes attempts at emergency treatment turn out to be more dangerous that the bite itself, with amateurs heroically, but mistakenly, trying do-it-yourself surgery and other unnecessary measures.

All snakes have small teeth, so it follows that all snakes can bite, but only the bite of the adder presents any danger.British snakes are shy animals and are far more frightened of you than you could possibly be of them.The adder will attack only if it feels threatened, as can happen if you take it by surprise and step on it accidentally or if you try to catch it or pick it up, which it dislikes intensely.If it hears you coming, it will normally get out of the way as quickly as it can, but adders cannot move very rapidly and may attack before moving if you are very close.

The effect of a bite varies considerably.It depends uponseveral things, one of which is the body-weight of the person bitten.The bigger the person, the less harmful the bite is likely to be , which is why children suffer far more seriously from snake bites than adults.A healthy person will also have better resistance against the poison. Very few people actually die from snake bites in Britain, and though these bites can make some people very ill, there are probably just as many cases of bites having little or no effect, as there are

of serious illness.

1. According to the passage, adders are most likely to be found .

   1. in wilder parts of Britain and Ireland

   2. in Scotland and nowhere else

   3. on uncultivated land throughout Britain

   4. in shady fields in England

2. We are told that British snakes are .

   1. afraid of human beings B)poisonous including the adder

      C)dangerous except the adder D)friendly towards human beings

3. When will the adder not attack you?

   1. when you try to catch it

   2. When you are some distance away from it.

   3. When you happen to step on it.

   4. When you try to pick it up.

4. If an adder hears you coming, it will usually .

   1. attack you immediately B)disappear very quickly C)wait to

      frighten you

D)move out of the way

1. According to the passage, a snake bite is .

   1. more harmful to a healthy man than to a sick man

   2. less harmful to an adult than to a child

   3. more dangerous than any serious illness

   4. always fatal in Britain