Introduce the story: Today we will talk about a puma that is wandering around the
countryside.
Step 1: Intensive reading.
Try to answer the question below while you’re reading:
Question: Where must the puma have come from?
Vocabulary:
puma n. 美洲狮
corner v. 使走投无路，使陷入困境
spot v. 看出，发现
trail n. 一串，一系列
evidence n .证据
print n. 印痕
accumulate v. 积累，积聚
cling (clung, clung) v. 粘
oblige v. 使 ……感到必须
convince v. 使 ……信服
hunt n. 追猎；寻找
somehow adv. 不知怎么搞的，不知道什么原因
blackberry n. 黑莓
human being 人类
disturb v. 令人不安
Passage:
Pumas are large, cat-like animals which are found in America. When reports came
into London Zoo that a wild puma had been spotted forty-five miles south of London,
they were not taken seriously. However, as the evidence began to accumulate, experts
from the Zoo felt obliged to investigate, for the descriptions given by people who
claimed to have seen the puma were extraordinarily similar.
美洲狮是一种体形似猫的大动物，产于美洲。当伦敦动物园接到报告说，在伦敦
以南 45 英里处发现一只美洲狮时，这些报告并没有受到重视。可是，随着证据
越来越多，动物园的专家们感到有必要进行一番调查，因为凡是声称见到过美洲
狮的人们所描述的情况竟是出奇地相似。
Notes:
1 at large 是介词短语，此处表示“逍遥自在”“行动自由”的意思。
2 When reports came into London Zoo that a wild puma had been spotted forty-five
miles south of London, 当伦敦动物园接到报告说，在伦敦以南 45 英里的地方发
现一头野生美洲狮时。这个从句中以 that 引导的从句是 reports 的同位语，用于
进一步说明报告的内容。
3 feel obliged to do sth. 是“感到不得不做某事”的意思。
The hunt for the puma began in a small village where a woman picking blackberries
saw 'a large cat' only five yards away from her. It immediately ran away when she
saw it, and experts confirmed that a puma will not attack a human being unless it is
cornered. The search proved difficult, for the puma was often observed at one place in
the morning and at another place twenty miles away in the evening. Wherever it went,
it left behind it a trail of dead deer and small animals like rabbits. Paw prints were
seen in a number of places and puma fur was found clinging to bushes.
搜寻美洲狮的工作是从一座小村庄开始的。那里的一位妇女在采摘黑莓时看见
“一只大猫” ，离她仅 5 码远，她刚看见它，它就立刻逃走了。专家证实，美洲狮
非被逼得走投无路，是决不会伤人的。事实上搜寻工作很困难，因为常常是早晨
在甲地发现那只美洲狮，晚上却在 20 英里外的乙地发现它的踪迹。无论它走哪
儿，一路上总会留下一串死鹿及死兔子之类的小动物，在许多地方看见爪印，灌
木丛中发现了粘在上面的美洲狮毛。
Notes:
4 it left behind it a trail of, 它身后留下一串 ……a trail of 作 left 的宾语，behind it
是状语，提到宾语之前是为了使句子结构更紧凑。
5 puma fur was found clinging to bushes 中，clinging 是现在分词，此处作主语 puma
fur 的主语补足语。下文中As no pumas had been reported missing…一句中，missing
也是现在分词作主语补足语。
Several people complained of "cat-like noises' at night and a businessman on a fishing
trip saw the puma up a tree. The experts were now fully convinced that the animal
was a puma, but where had it come from? As no pumas had been reported missing
from any zoo in the country, this one must have been in the possession of a private
collector and somehow managed to escape. The hunt went on for several weeks, but
the puma was not caught. It is disturbing to think that a dangerous wild animal is still
at large in the quiet countryside.
有人抱怨说夜里听见“像猫一样的叫声”；一位商人去钓鱼，看见那只美洲狮在树
上。专家们如今已经完全肯定那只动物就是美洲狮，但它是从哪儿来的呢？由于
全国动物园没有一家报告丢了美洲狮，因此那只美洲狮一定是某位私人收藏豢养
的，不知怎么设法逃出来了。搜寻工作进行了好几个星期，但始终未能逮住那只
美洲狮。想到在宁静的乡村里有一头危险的野兽继续逍遥流窜，真令人担心。
Notes:
6 in the possession of, 为……所有。
1.2【阅读理解】A puma at large
Step 2: Comprehension questions.
1 What do pumas look like? (Large cats.)
2 Where are they found? (In America.)
3 Where had a wild puma been seen? (Forty-five miles south of London.)
4 The report was received by London Zoo, wasn't it? (Yes, it was.)
5 Why did the Zoo feel obliged to investigate? (Because the descriptions given by
people were similar.)
6 Where did the hunt for the puma begin? (In a small village.)
7 What did a woman claim she had seen? (A large cat.)
8 What had the woman been doing at the time? (Picking blackberries.)
9 On what occasions will a puma attack a human? (When it is cornered.)
10 Did the search for the puma prove difficult? (Yes, it did.)
11 Why? (Because it was often seen at one place in the morning and at another place
in the evening.)
12 What did the puma eat? (Deer and small animals like rabbits.
13 What evidence was found for the puma's existence? (Paw prints and puma fur
14 What sorts of noises did people complain about? (Cat-like noises.)
15 When did a businessman see a puma up a tree? (When he was on fishing trip.)
16 The experts were fully convinced of its existence, weren't they? (Yes, they were.)
1.3【拓展写作】A puma at large
Step 3: Composition
Describe the occasion when the woman picking blackberries saw the puma. Expand
the following into a paragraph of about 150 words.
Mrs. stone had spent the whole morning…It was nearly lunch time, so she
decided…She was just…when she heard a noise in…Then she saw an animal
which …She knew it was not a cat because…The animal suddenly…and she thought it
was going to…She dropped her basket and…Hearing the sound, the animal…after
which, Mrs. Stone…and ran all the way home. She told her neighbors that…but they
didn’t believe her. She also telephoned the police, but they…
Key to composition
Mrs. Stone had spent the whole morning picking blackberries in the countryside near
her home. It was nearly lunch time, so she decided to return home for lunch. She was
just picking up her basket when she heard a noise in the bushes. Then she saw an
animal which looked like a cat. She knew it was not a cat because it was so large. The
animal suddenly turned round to look at her and she thought it was going to come
towards her and perhaps attack her. She dropped her basket and screamed loudly.
Hearing the sound, the animal disappeared into the bushes after which Mrs. Stone
picked up her basket and ran all the way home. She told her neighbors that she had
seen a puma in the countryside, but they did not believe her. She also telephoned the
police but they didn't believe her either.
以下为仅讲义内容：
课外练习：
1 Experts eventually decided to investigate .
(a) because they did not believe that pumas existed in England
(b)because they wanted a puma for the London Zoo
(c)when a woman saw a puma in a small village
(d) because people's descriptions of the puma had a lot in common
2 What particular piece of evidence persuaded the experts that a puma had been seen
in the village?
(a)The puma had not attacked the woman.
(b)The woman had described the animal she had seen as ‘a large cat’.
(c)A puma had come very close to a human being.
(d) The puma had behaved like cat.
3 What was the problem the experts were unable to solve?
(a)How the puma had managed to cover such great distances within a day.
(b)How the puma had escaped from zoo.
(c)Whom the puma had belonged to.
(d)How the puma had climbed a tree.
4 The accumulating evidence made the experts the animal was a puma.
(a)to think
(b)think
(c)think
(d)thought
5 People said the puma.
(a)to have seen
(b)to see
(c)they saw
(d) they had seen
6 , it immediately ran away.
(a)Observing her
(b)On being observed
(c)Having been observed
(d) On her being observed
7 Pumas never attack a human being except cornered.
(a)they are
(b) being
(c) that they are
(d) when they are
8 The experts were now fully convinced that the animal puma.
(a)must be
(b)should have been
(c)can only be
(d)could only have been
9 The woman saw ‘a large cat ’ five yards away from her.
(a)at least
(b)four or
(c) no more than
(d) within
10 A puma will not attack a human being unless it feels itself to be .
(a)in a corner
(b)in a trap
(c) at an angle
(d) under cover
11 business man on a fishing trip is probably someone who .
(a)sells fish
(b)fishes for pleasure
(c)nets fish
(d) earns his living as a fisherman
12 A private collector is man who collects .
(a)for his own benefit
(b)on his own
(c) in private
(d)unknown to the public
答案：1d 2a 3c 4c 5d 6b 7d 8d 9c 10b 11b 12a
1.