The Return of Monkey Life IELTS Reading: Official Translation & Detailed Analysis

Life always finds a way to sprout, even in places that seem to have been devastated by human activity. The reading passage “The Return of Monkey Life” (or Rainforest Trees Growing Anew on Central American Farmland) is a brilliant testament to nature’s adaptability, specifically regarding howler monkeys in the agricultural lands of Central America.

Join ECE as we dive deep into the original text, master Ecology vocabulary, and decode every trap in the question set below to fully conquer this reading passage!

Reading Passage & Questions

RAINFOREST TREES GROWING ANEW ON CENTRAL AMERICAN FARMLAND

A. Hacienda La Pacifica

Hacienda La Pacifica, a working cattle ranch in the Guanacaste province of northern Costa Rica, has been home to a community of mantled howler monkeys for decades. Other native primates—white-faced capuchin monkeys and spider monkeys—were once common in this area as well, but they vanished after the Pan-American Highway was built nearby in the 1950s and most of the surrounding land was cleared for cattle ranching. At Hacienda La Pacifica, however, an enlightened ranch owner chose to leave strips of native trees standing. He used these as windbreaks to protect both cattle and their food crops from dry-season winds. In the process, the farmer unwittingly founded a unique laboratory for the study of monkeys.

B. Study by Ken Glander

Ken Glander, a primatologist from Duke University in the USA, is studying La Pacifica’s monkeys to understand the relationship between howlers and regenerating forests at the edges of grazing lands. Studying such disturbed woodlands is increasingly important because, throughout much of the New World Tropics, these are the only forests left. In the 18th century, tropical dry forests covered most of Central America, but by the 1980s, less than two percent remained undisturbed, and less than one percent was protected.

C. Adaptability of Howlers

Howlers persist at La Pacifica, Glander explains, because they are leaf-eaters. They eat fruit when it is available but, unlike capuchin and spider monkeys, do not depend on large areas of fruiting trees. Glander is particularly interested in howlers’ ability to thrive on leaves loaded with toxins—poisonous substances designed to protect the plants. For leaf-eaters, long-term exposure to a specific plant toxin can increase their ability to neutralize poisonous substances and absorb leaf nutrients. Watching generations of howlers at La Pacifica has shown Glander that the monkeys keep their systems primed by sampling a variety of plants and then focusing on a small number of the most nutritious food items. The leaves that grow in regenerating forests, like those at La Pacifica, are actually more howler-friendly than those produced by the centuries-old trees that survive farther south. In younger forests, trees put most of their limited energy into growing wood, leaves, and fruit, so they produce much lower levels of toxins than well-established, old-growth trees.

D. Santa Rosa National Park

The value of maturing forests to primates is also a subject of study at Santa Rosa National Park, about 35 miles northwest of La Pacifica. Large areas of Santa Rosa’s forests had at one time been burnt to make space for cattle ranching and coffee farming, thereby devastating local monkey habitat. But in 1971, the government protected the area by designating it a National Park, and species of indigenous trees which had been absent for decades began to invade the abandoned pastures. Capuchins were the first to begin using the reborn forests, followed by howlers. Eventually, even spider monkeys, fruit-eaters that need large areas of continuous forest, returned. In the first 28 years following the protection of the area, the capuchin population doubled, while the number of howlers increased sevenfold.

E. Population Growth of Howlers

Some of the same traits that allow howlers to survive at La Pacifica also explain their population boom in Santa Rosa. Howler reproduction is faster than that of other native monkey species. They give birth for the first time at about 3.5 years of age, compared with seven years for capuchins, and eight or more for spider monkeys. Also, while a female spider monkey will have a baby about once every four years, well-fed howlers can produce an infant every two years. Another factor is diet. Howlers are very adaptable feeders and only need a comparatively small home range. Spider monkeys, on the other hand, need to occupy a huge home range. Also crucial is the fact that the leaves howlers eat hold plenty of water, so the monkeys can survive away from open streams and water holes. This ability gives them a real advantage over capuchin and spider monkeys, which have suffered during the long, ongoing drought in the area.

F. Study by Alejandro Estrada

Alejandro Estrada, an ecologist at Estacion de Biologia Los Tuxtlas in Veracruz, Mexico, has been studying the ecology of a group of howler monkeys that thrive in a habitat totally altered by humans: a cacao plantation in Tabasco state, Mexico. Cacao plants need shade to grow, so 40 years ago the owners of Cholula Cacao Farm planted figs, monkeypod, and other tall trees to form a protective canopy over their crop. The howlers moved in about 25 years ago after nearby forests were cut. This strange habitat seems to support about as many monkeys as would a same-sized patch of wild forest. The howlers eat the leaves and fruit of the shade trees, leaving the valuable cacao pods alone.

G. Benefits to Farmers

Estrada believes the monkeys bring underappreciated benefits to such plantations, dispersing the seeds of fruits such as fig and other shade trees, and fertilizing the soil. Spider monkeys also forage for fruit here, though they need nearby areas of forest to survive in the long term. He hopes that farmers will begin to see the advantages of associating with wild monkeys, which could include potential ecotourism projects. ‘Conservation is usually viewed as a conflict between farming practices and the need to preserve nature,’ Estrada says. ‘We’re moving away from that vision and beginning to consider ways in which commercial activities may become a tool for the conservation of primates in human-modified landscapes.’

Questions

Questions 14 – 17 Reading Passage 2 has seven paragraphs, A-G. Which paragraph contains the following information? Write the correct letter A-G, in boxes 14-17 on your answer sheet.

NB You may use any letter more than once.

14. a reason why newer forests provide howlers with better feeding opportunities than older forests

15. a reference to a change in farmers’ attitudes towards wildlife

16. a description of the means by which howlers select the best available diet for themselves

17. figures relating to the reduction of natural wildlife habitat over a period of time

Questions 18 – 21 Complete the summary below. Choose ONE WORD ONLY from the passage for each answer. Write your answers in boxes 18-21.

Why do howlers have an advantage over other Central American monkeys?

Howler monkeys have a more rapid rate of 18 …… than either capuchin or spider monkeys.

Unlike the other local monkey species, howlers can survive without eating 19 ….., and so can live inside a relatively small habitat area. Their diet is more flexible, and they are able to tolerate leaves with high levels of 20 ….. Howlers can also survive periods of 21 … better than the other monkey species can.

Questions 22-26 Look at the following features (Questions 22-26) and the list of locations below. Match each feature with the correct location, A, B or C. Write the correct letter, A, B or C, in boxes 22-26 on your answer sheet.

NB You may use any letter more than once.

List of Locations

A. Hacienda La Pacifica

B. Santa Rosa National Park

C. Cholula Cacao Farm

22. It has seen the return of native tree species.

23. It supports only one species of native monkey.

24. Its monkey population helps the agriculture of the area.

25. It is home to populations of all three local monkey species.

26. Its landscape was altered by the construction of a transport link.

Translated Reading Passage

A. Hacienda La Pacifica, a remote working cattle ranch in Guanacaste province, northern Costa Rica, has been home to a community of mantled howler monkeys for decades. Other native primates—white-faced capuchin monkeys and spider monkeys—were also once common in this area, but they vanished after the Pan-American Highway was built nearby in the 1950s and most of the surrounding land was cleared for cattle ranching. However, at Hacienda La Pacifica, an enlightened ranch owner decided to leave some strips of native trees growing naturally. He used these as windbreaks to protect both cattle and their food crops from dry-season winds. In the process, this farmer unwittingly founded a unique laboratory for the study of monkeys.

B. Ken Glander, a primatologist from Duke University in the USA, is studying the monkeys at La Pacifica in an effort to understand the relationship between howler monkeys and the regenerating forests at the edges of grazing lands. Studying such disturbed woodlands is increasingly important because, throughout much of the New World Tropics, these are the only forests left. In the 18th century, tropical dry forests once covered most of Central America, but by the 1980s, less than two percent remained undisturbed, and less than one percent was protected.

C. According to Glander, howler monkeys persist at La Pacifica because they are leaf-eaters. They eat fruit when it is available, but unlike capuchin and spider monkeys, they do not depend on large areas of fruiting trees. What particularly interests Glander is the howlers’ ability to thrive on leaves loaded with toxins—poisonous substances produced by plants for self-defense. For leaf-eaters, long-term exposure to a specific plant toxin can increase their ability to neutralize poisonous substances and absorb nutrients from leaves. Observing many generations of howlers at La Pacifica has shown Glander that the monkeys keep their digestive systems primed by sampling a variety of plants and then focusing on a small number of the most nutritious food items. Leaves growing in regenerating forests, like those at La Pacifica, are actually more “howler-friendly” than those produced by centuries-old trees farther south. In younger forests, trees put most of their limited energy into growing wood, leaves, and fruit, so they produce much lower levels of toxins than the long-established, deep-rooted old-growth trees.

D. The value of maturing forests to primates is also a subject of study at Santa Rosa National Park, about 35 miles northwest of La Pacifica. Large areas of Santa Rosa’s forests were once burnt to make space for cattle ranching and coffee farming, thereby devastating the local monkey habitat. But in 1971, the government protected the area by designating it a National Park, and indigenous tree species that had been absent for decades began to invade the abandoned pastures. Capuchins were the first to begin using these regenerating forests, followed by howlers. Eventually, even spider monkeys, fruit-eaters that need large areas of continuous forest, returned. In the first 28 years after the area was protected, the capuchin population doubled, while the number of howlers increased sevenfold.

E. Some of the same traits that allow howlers to survive at La Pacifica also explain their population boom in Santa Rosa. Howler reproduction is faster than that of other native monkey species. They give birth for the first time at about 3.5 years of age, compared with 7 years for capuchins and 8 years or more for spider monkeys. Additionally, while a female spider monkey will give birth about once every four years, well-fed howlers can produce an infant every two years. Another factor is diet. Howlers are very flexible feeders and only need a relatively small home range. Conversely, spider monkeys need to occupy a huge home range. A very important fact is that the leaves howlers eat contain plenty of water, so the monkeys can survive away from open streams and water holes. This ability gives them a real advantage over capuchin and spider monkeys, which have suffered miserably during the long, ongoing drought in the area.

F. Alejandro Estrada, an ecologist at Estacion de Biologia Los Tuxtlas in Veracruz, Mexico, has studied the ecology of a group of howler monkeys that thrive in a habitat totally altered by humans: a cacao plantation in Tabasco state, Mexico. Cacao plants need shade to grow, so 40 years ago, the owners of the Cholula Cacao Farm planted figs, monkeypod, and other tall trees to form a protective canopy for their crops. The howlers moved in about 25 years ago after nearby forests were cut down. This strange habitat seems to support about as many monkeys as a wild forest of the same size. Howlers eat the leaves and fruit of the shade trees and do not touch the valuable cacao pods.

G. Estrada believes the monkeys bring underappreciated benefits to such plantations by dispersing the seeds of fruits like figs and other shade trees, while also fertilizing the soil. Spider monkeys also come here to forage for fruit, though they need nearby forest areas to survive in the long term. He hopes that farmers will begin to see the advantages of coexisting with wild monkeys, which could include potential ecotourism projects. “Conservation is usually viewed as a conflict between farming practices and the need to preserve nature,” Estrada says. “We are moving away from that vision and beginning to consider ways in which commercial activities may become a tool for the conservation of primates in human-modified landscapes.”

Academic Vocabulary Summary

You can use these Ecology & Environment terms from the passage to improve your Lexical Resource score:

• Primate (n): A mammal of the order that includes monkeys, apes, and humans.

• Vanish (v): To disappear completely.

• Regenerate (v): To regrow or restore (a forest/habitat).

• Devastate (v): To destroy or ruin completely.

• Thrive (v): To grow or develop well; to flourish.

• Toxin (n): A poisonous substance.

• Canopy (n): The uppermost layer of branches and leaves in a forest.

• Forage (v): To search for food.

• Disperse (v): To spread or distribute (seeds) over a wide area.

• Underappreciated (adj): Not valued or recognized enough.

Detailed Analysis & Answer Explanations

Questions 14-17: Matching Information

14. C

Information: A reason why newer forests provide howlers with better feeding opportunities than older forests.

Explanation: At the end of paragraph C, the author writes: “In younger forests, trees put most of their limited energy into growing wood… so they produce much lower levels of toxins than do well-established, old-growth trees.” Producing fewer toxins is the reason why howlers have safer/better feeding opportunities.

15. G

Information: A reference to a change in farmers’ attitudes towards wildlife.

Explanation: Paragraph G quotes Estrada hoping that farmers will see the benefits of coexisting with monkeys. The specific change in attitude is found in the sentence: