1. Warm up activity:
□ Spend a few minute writing down all the different words you associate with tigers. Share your words with your friend(s) and talk about them. Together, put the words into different categories.
□ Share your notes with those of your friend and tell the class about your thoughts/points
2. Read the report on the alarming late of the Royal Bengal Tigers and answer the questions below. The report was published In the online version of The Guardian newspaper.
A vast mangrove forest shared by Bangladesh and India that is home to possibly 500 Bengal tigers is being rapidly destroyed by erosion, rising sea levels and storm surges, according to a major study by researchers at die Zoological Society of London (ZSL) and others.
The Sundarbans forest took the brunt of super cyclone Sidr in 2007, but new satellite studies show that 71% of the forested coastline is retreating by as much as 200 metres a year. If erosion continues at this pace, already threatened tiger populations living in the forests will be put farthest risk
Natalie Pettorelli, one of the report's authors, said: "Coastline retreat is evident everywhere. A continuing rate of retreat would see these parts of the mangrove disappear within 50 years. On the Indian side of the Sundarbans, the island which extends most into the Bay of Bengal has receded by an average of 150 metres a year, with a maximum of just over 200 metres; this would see the disappearance of the island in about 20 years."
The Sundarbans is known for vanishing islands but the scientists said the current retreat of the mangrove forests on the southern coastline is not normal. "The causes for increasing coastline retreat, other than direct anthropocentric ones, include increased frequency of storm surges and other extreme natural events, rises in sea-level and increased salinity which increases the vulnerability of mangroves," said Pettorelli.
"Our results indicate a rapidly retreating coastline that cannot be accounted for by the regular dynamics of the Sundarbans. Degradation is happening fast, weakening this natural shield for India and Bangladesh."
"As human development thrives, and global temperature continues to rise, natural protection from tidal waves and cyclones is being degraded at alarming rates. This will inevitably lead to species loss in this richly biodiverse part of the world, if nothing is done to stop it."
"The Sundarbans is a critical tiger habitat; one of only a handful of remaining forests big enough to hold several hundred tigers. To lose the Sundarbans would be to move a step closer to the extinction of these majestic animals," said ZSL tiger expert Sarah Christie.
[Source: http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2013/jan/29/sunderbans-disappearing-mangrove-india-bangladeshBy: John Vidal, Tuesday 29 January 2013]
3. Read the statements below and say if they are true (T) or false (F):
a. There are about 500 tigers in the Sundarbans.
b. Researchers forecast that some parts of the Sundarbans might cease to exist in the next 50 years.
c. Natural calamities are the only reasons for the increase in coastline retreats.
d. There has been less natural protection from storms and tidal waves.
e. The Sundarbans is a world famous site for its biodiversity
4. Match (he words from the report in Column A with their meanings in Column B:
(Column A) Words
|
(Column B)
Meanings
|
1. erosion
2. to
retreat
3.
mangrove
4,
coastline
5. storm
surge
6. to
account for
/anthropogenic
8. to
thrive
9. habitat
10.
extinction
|
i. (noun) the natural environment in which a species or
group of species lives
ii. (adjective)
of, relating to, or resulting from the influence of human beings on nature
iii. (mangrove) a tropical tree that has roots which grow
from its branches and that grows in swamps or shallow salt water
iv. (noun) the slate or situation that results when
something (such as a plant or animal species) has died out completely
v. (verb) a process by which the surface of the earth
is worn away by the action of water, winds, waves, etc.
vi. (verb) to move back from a position of advancement
or become smaller
vii.
(verb) to grow vigorously; flourish
viii. (
noun) the outline of a coast, esp. when seen from the sea, or the land
adjacent to it
ix. (noun) an abnormal rise in the level of the sea
along a coast caused by the onshore winds of a severe cyclone
x. (phrasal verb) to be there as an explanation for
something
|
5. Talk In pairs about tigers. Use the questions cards below to guide your discussion. Student A and B will have separate questions cards. Make sure you don't show your questions to your friend.
STUDENT A's QUESTIONS
a. Do you like tigers?
b. How interested are you in animal conservation?
c. If the tiger disappears, what will this say about mankind?
d. Arc there any animals besides the tigers that arc endangered in Bangladesh?
e. What do you think of the fact there are only 300 tigers in the whole of Bangladesh?
f. Whose responsibility do you think it is to save the tiger?
STUDENT B's QUESTIONS
a. Do you think it is possible for all big cats to become extinct?
b. Do you think it is possible to breed enough tigers and introduce them in the wild?
c. What do you think of poaching?
d. What punishment should be given to people who trade in products made from endangered species?
e. If you saw tiger products for sale, what would you do?
f. How can tbc world stop the trade in tiger products?
6. TIGERS' SURVEY: In pairs / groups, make questions about saving tigers and other animals from extinction and do the following:
□ Ask other classmates your questions and note down their answers.
□ Go back to your original friend/group and compare your findings.
□ Make mini-rapscallions to other groups on your findings.
If you want to read the next lesson of this unit please click the link below:
Lesson 5: Kuakata: Daughter of the Sea
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