Biologists estimate that as many as 2 million lesser prairie chickens—a kind of bird living on stretching grasslands—once lent red to the often grey landscape of the midwestern and southwestern United States. But just some 22,000 birds remain today, occupying about 16% of the species’ historic range.

The crash was a major reason the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) decided to formally list the bird as threatened. “The lesser prairie chicken is in a desperate situation,” said USFWS Director Daniel Ashe. Some environmentalists, however, were disappointed. They had pushed the agency to designate the bird as “endangered,” a status that gives federal officials greater regulatory power to crack down on threats. But Ashe and others argued that the “threatened” tag gave the federal government flexibility to try out new, potentially less confrontational conservation approaches. In particular, they called for forging closer collaborations with western state governments, which are often uneasy with federal action, and with the private landowners who control an estimated 95% of the prairie chicken’s habitat.

Under the plan, for example, the agency said it would not prosecute landowners or businesses that unintentionally kill, harm, or disturb the bird, as long as they had signed a range-wide management plan to restore prairie chicken habitat. Negotiated by USFWS and the states, the plan requires individuals and businesses that damage habitat as part of their operations to pay into a fund to replace every acre destroyed with 2 new acres of suitable habitat. The fund will also be used to compensate landowners who set aside habitat. USFWS also set an interim goal of restoring prairie chicken populations to an annual average of 67,000 birds over the next 10 years. And it gives the Western Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies (WAFWA), a coalition of state agencies, the job of monitoring progress. Overall, the idea is to let “states” remain in the driver’s seat for managing the species,” Ashe said.

Not everyone buys the win-win rhetoric. Some Congress members are trying to block the plan, and at least a dozen industry groups, four states, and three environmental groups are challenging it in federal court. Not surprisingly, industry groups and states generally argue it goes too far; environmentalists say it doesn’t go far enough “The federal government is giving responsibility for managing the bird to the same industries that are pushing it to extinction,” says biologist Jay Lininger.

1.The major reason for listing the lesser prairie chicken as threatened is _________.

A its drastically decreased population

B the underestimate of the grassland acreage

C a desperate appeal from some biologists

D the insistence of private landowners

解析：选A。A 细节理解题。根据题目定位到第二段第一句，可知the crash是主要原因，结合上下文可知the crash指代第一段的草原松鸡数量骤减（从200万降到2.2万）这一事实，故选A。

2.The “threatened” tag disappointed some environmentalists in that it _________.

A was a give-in to governmental pressure

B would involve fewer agencies in action

C granted less federal regulatory power

D went against conservation policies

解析：选C。C 细节理解题。根据disappointed和environmentalists定位到第二段第三句，结合下文可知，他们认为将草原松鸡列为濒危物种会给联邦政府带来更大的管理权力，but表转折，说明事实上并不是这样，即事实上政府的权力被削弱了，C符合原文，故选C。

3.It can be learned from Paragraph 3 that unintentional harm-doers will not be prosecuted if they _________.

A agree to pay a sum for compensation

B volunteer to set up an equally big habitat

C offer to support the WAFWA monitoring job

D promise to raise funds for USFWS operations

解析：选A。A 推理判断题。根据第三段unintentional harm-doers和prosecuted定位到第一句，可知只要那些无意杀害、伤害或打扰草原松鸡的人签署一份管理计划，他们就不会被检举。结合下文可知，该计划要求他们支付基金来补偿那些放弃栖息地的土地所有者，A符合原文，故选A。

4.According to Ashe, the leading role in managing the species is _________.

A the federal government

B the wildlife agencies

C the landowners

D the states

解析：选D。D 细节理解题。根据Ashe和managing the species定位到倒数第二段最后一句，可知阿西娅认为这一想法让各州在管理方面占主导地位，in the driver’s seat对应the leading role，D符合原文，故选D。

5.Jay Lininger would most likely support _________.

A industry groups

B the win-win rhetoric

C environmental groups

D the plan under challenge

解析：选C。C 细节理解题。根据Jay Lininger定位到最后一段最后一句，可知他认为政府将管理草原松鸡的责任推给了那些将草原松鸡推向灭绝的行业，即他不赞成联邦政府的做法，结合全文可知，他的看法和环保团体的看法更接近，故选C。