115 學年度學測英文 第 12 題

From the campfire to the café, people have always gathered together to share the latest news. White rhinoceroses, 11, do the same thing—only their choice of meeting place is a giant pile of poop.

A new study indicates that rhinos have a smelly way to 12. Scientists studying white rhinos in South Africa have found that these animals leave messages in their poop. In particular, they leave their poop in the same place for all the other members in the group to smell—just like humans leaving messages on social media. Furthermore, different rhinos leave different chemicals in their poop, which provide important 13 about the age, sex, general health, and reproductive conditions of each specific rhino. This is of great significance for the peace and harmony in the group. When all members in a group know what's going on with each other, it is 14 that they will fight.

The researchers have even made "fake poop" to see how different rhinos would react. They find that dominant males are particularly 15 the "fake poop" that carries chemicals from females ready to mate. The males sniff it for longer duration and come back to the same spot more frequently, a clear sign that they are gathering information about mating opportunities from the poop.