About 5 million honeybees bound for Alaska last weekend got stopped when Delta Air Lines made them travel through Atlanta, where most of the bees died after being left for hours in wooden containers on the ground during hot weather.

The bees were the first of two shipments(运输的货物) ordered by Alaska beekeeper Sarah McElrea from a distributor in California. The bees were about to put pollen(花粉) into apple trees in Alaska, where they are not native. The apple trees then would produce more seeds. But the bees were moved from their original route to Anchorage, Alaska, and instead put on a flight to Atlanta, where they were to be transferred to a direct flight to Anchorage, according to published reports.

McElrea said she worried when the 800-pound shipment didn’t arrive in Atlanta in time to make the connecting flight(转接班机). The next day, she said, Delta Air Lines told her some bees had escaped, so airline workers put the containers holding the bees outside a Delta cargo bay(货舱). In a panic, McElrea reached a beekeeper in Atlanta, who rushed to the airport and discovered that many of the bees had died from heat.

In an emailed statement, Delta spokeswoman Catherine Morrow told The Associated Press on Friday that the airline “was made aware of the shipment situation...and quickly engaged the appropriate internal teams to assess the situation. We have taken immediate action to implement new measures to ensure events of this nature do not occur in the future.” Morrow said Delta apologized to McElrea. But the airline declined to make anyone available for an interview.

The beekeeper in Atlanta, Edward Morgan, called more than a dozen people to go to the airport and try to save any bees that were still alive. “It’s extremely shocking to see that many dead,” Georgia beekeeper Julia Mahood said. “Just clumps(群) of dead bees that had no chance because they were left outside with no food and basically got lost in Delta’s machinery.”

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1.Why were the bees sent to Alaska?

A To change their route.

B To catch a direct flight.

C To defeat the native bees.

D To increase apple production.

解析：选D。D 推理判断题。根据第二段第二、三句“The bees were about to put pollen into apple trees in Alaska, where they are not native. The apple trees then would produce more seeds.”这些蜜蜂本来是要去阿拉斯加给当地的苹果树授粉的，授粉之后苹果树就会产生更多的种子，由此可知这些蜂蜜被送到阿拉斯加是为了增加苹果的产量。故选D。

2.What did McElrea do after she was told the escape of some bees?

A She expressed her anxiety.

B She put the containers in a cargo bay.

C She arrived in Atlanta very quickly.

D She turned to Edward Morgan for help.

解析：选D。D 推理判断题。根据第三段的最后一句“In a panic, McElrea reached a beekeeper in Atlanta, who rushed to the airport and discovered that many of the bees had died from heat.”可知她联系了一名亚特兰大的养蜂人（即第五段第一句中提到的Edward Morgan），她向那名养蜂人求助。故选D。

3.What is the airline’s attitude to the accident according to Catherine Morrow?

A Concerned.

B Indifferent.

C Sceptical.

D Impatient.

解析：选A。A 推理判断题。根据第四段“and quickly engaged the appropriate internal teams to assess the situation”以及“We have taken immediate action to implement new measures”以及“Morrow said Delta apologized to McElrea”等可知Catherine Morrow认为达美航空反应迅速，立即采取措施并且向McElrea道歉，由此推断她认为达美航空对这次事故很关心。故选A。

4.What can we learn from Julia Mahood’s words?

A Live bees should be transferred quickly.

B Edward Morgan could have saved the bees.

C Lack of food contributed to the death of bees.

D Delta Air Lines cargo bays are too large for bees.

解析：选C。C 推理判断题。根据第五段的“because they were left outside with no food and basically got lost in Delta’s machinery”可知，这些蜜蜂被留在外面，也没有食物，这也是蜜蜂死亡的原因之一。故选C。