Cambridge IELTS 21 · Academic · Test 3 · Passage 1
Saving the Saiga — IELTS Reading Answers
All 13 answers for Saving the Saiga, Cambridge IELTS 21 Academic Reading Test 3 Passage 1, with evidence and explanations.
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Saving the Saiga answer key at a glance
Questions 1–13. Tap an answer to see the evidence.
What this passage tests
The passage profiles the saiga antelope, its adaptations, the poaching and habitat pressures it faces, and the Altyn Dala restoration project. Questions 1-7 are note completion on physical features and threats. Questions 8-13 are True/False/Not Given on distribution, history and conservation.
Questions 1–7: Note Completion
Strategy: Predict the word class from the note, find the paraphrase of the note's keyword in the passage, then copy the answer exactly within the word limit.
“The swollen nostrils of the nose serve several purposes: they filter out dust and cool the blood during hot, dry summers, and they warm the cold air before it enters the saiga's lungs in winter”
The swollen nostrils 'filter out dust' from the air.
“The swollen nostrils of the nose serve several purposes: they filter out dust and cool the blood during hot, dry summers, and they warm the cold air before it enters the saiga's lungs in winter”
The same nostrils 'cool the blood' during hot, dry summers.
“Other seasonal adaptations include a heavy winter coat that the saiga sheds when the weather warms up”
Saiga grow 'a heavy winter coat' and shed it when the weather warms.
“Male saiga are a particular target, because their horns are highly prized by traditional medicine practitioners”
Horns are 'highly prized by traditional medicine practitioners', which makes males a target.
“Another threat to the survival of the saiga is loss of habitat, as a result of agricultural expansion and human settlement”
Another threat is 'loss of habitat' caused by agricultural expansion and settlement.
“Physical barriers such as railways, pipelines and fences can block the seasonal migration routes of this transboundary species”
Railways, pipelines and fences 'block the seasonal migration routes'.
“The steppe region has also become increasingly arid in recent years, and many of the smaller streams that the species normally depended on have dried up and vanished”
Many smaller streams the species depended on 'have dried up and vanished'.
Questions 8–13: True / False / Not Given
Strategy: Judge the whole statement against the text. FALSE contradicts the passage; NOT GIVEN means the passage never addresses that specific claim.
Today, numbers of saiga are distributed evenly across four nations in Central Asia: Kazakhstan, Russia, Mongolia and Uzbekistan.
“This country is estimated to be home to well over 90% of the global saiga population, with Russia, Mongolia and Uzbekistan accounting for the rest”
FALSE: over 90% of the global population is in Kazakhstan, so the animals are not evenly distributed across four nations.
For most of the 20th century, the population of saiga were falling.
“Legal protection ensured its survival for a while, and numbers steadily recovered throughout most of the 20th century”
FALSE: numbers 'steadily recovered throughout most of the 20th century', so they were not falling.
Efforts to protect rhinos in Africa had a significant effect on saiga populations.
“Poaching reached epidemic levels after misguided conservationists tried to relieve the pressure on threatened African rhinos by actively encouraging the use of saiga horns in traditional medicine as an alternative to those of rhinos.”
TRUE: encouraging saiga horn as a rhino substitute led to 'epidemic levels' of poaching and a population crash.
Unpredictable fluctuations in climate are threatening the wildlife of Central Asia more than in other parts of the world.
“Climate change poses a further threat. Although well adapted to cold winters and hot summers, saiga struggle to cope with temperature extremes and unpredictable fluctuations in climate”
NOT GIVEN: saiga struggle with temperature extremes, but the passage never compares Central Asia with other regions.
The Altyn Dala Conservation Initiative was formed for the benefit of a number of different animals.
“Its purpose is to protect and restore Kazakhstan's steppe, semi-desert and desert ecosystems and the many species they support, including the critically endangered saiga”
TRUE: the initiative protects ecosystems and 'the many species they support', not only the saiga.
The Altyn Dala Conservation Initiative's recognition as a World Restoration Flagship project attracted additional international funding for the scheme.
“In 2022 the United Nations recognised the initiative as a World Restoration Flagship project, an accolade reserved for the ten best examples of large-scale ecosystem restoration around the globe”
NOT GIVEN: UN recognition is mentioned, but no additional international funding is claimed.
Learn the question types in this passage
Traps in this passage
- Question 8 is FALSE rather than NOT GIVEN because the passage gives exact distribution figures: over 90% in Kazakhstan.
- 'May' and 'might' in the passage cannot support a definite statement. Questions 11 and 13 are NOT GIVEN for this reason.
- Note completion answers are single words already in the passage. Keep the singular/plural form used in the text.
Frequently asked questions
Where does the Saving the Saiga passage come from?
It is Passage 1 of Cambridge IELTS 21 Academic Reading Test 3, and it covers Questions 1–13.
What question types appear in Saving the Saiga?
The passage is tested with Note Completion, True / False / Not Given. Each type is explained on this page, alongside the answers.
Are these reading answers reliable?
Every answer is paired with the sentence that proves it, so you can check each one against the passage yourself. Use the page after a timed attempt, not instead of one.
Cambridge IELTS is published by Cambridge University Press & Assessment. Band9Prep is not affiliated with Cambridge. This page is an independent study aid: it gives the answer key, the passage evidence and an explanation so you can review an attempt you have already made.