A strange-nosed antelope that once ran in herds of millions. It crashed after 1991 under poaching, blocked migration routes, disease and a drying climate. A large Kazakh conservation project has since helped push numbers back up.
The notes (1-7) run in order through paragraphs B to G. The TRUE / FALSE / NOT GIVEN block (8-13) starts at A and ends in H.
Note completion (ONE WORD ONLY)
Questions 1-7
How to attack this block: The notes follow the passage's two halves: how the saiga is built, then why it declined. Each 'reason for decline' note matches one paragraph (D poaching, E habitat, F disease, G climate). Go to the right paragraph and look for the one noun the note is missing.
Question 1
Answer: dustParagraph B, third sentence
What do the saiga's swollen nostrils keep out?
The swollen nostrils of the nose serve several purposes: they filter out dust and cool the blood during hot, dry summers
Question says → Passage says
keep ___ outfilter out
Why: To filter something out is to stop it getting in, which is 'keep ___ out'. What they filter out is dust, a single uncountable noun.
The trap: 'Air' appears in the same sentence, but the nose warms the air, it doesn't keep it out. That's the third bullet point.
Question 2
Answer: bloodParagraph B, third sentence
What does the nose cool down in summer?
they filter out dust and cool the blood during hot, dry summers
Question says → Passage says
lower the temperature ofcool
in summerduring hot, dry summers
Why: 'Lower the temperature of' is just a longer way to say 'cool', and the thing being cooled is the blood. The note has 'its', so you need the noun only: 'blood'.
The trap: 'Nose' or 'lungs' might come to mind, but the lungs belong to the winter point, and the nose is what does the cooling, not what gets cooled.
Question 3
Answer: coatParagraph B, last sentence
What does the saiga grow for winter and lose in spring?
Other seasonal adaptations include a heavy winter coat that the saiga sheds when the weather warms up.
Question says → Passage says
thickheavy
which it loses in springthat the saiga sheds when the weather warms up
Why: 'Heavy' becomes 'thick', and 'sheds when the weather warms up' becomes 'loses in spring'. The noun after the adjective is 'coat'.
The trap: 'Winter' sits right before 'coat' in the passage, but the note already says 'in winter'. The gap needs the thing itself.
Question 4
Answer: hornsParagraph D, second sentence
What part of the male saiga do poachers want?
Male saiga are a particular target, because their horns are highly prized by traditional medicine practitioners.
Question says → Passage says
especiallya particular target
male saigaMale saiga
Why: Males are targeted 'because their horns are highly prized', so the poaching is for the horns. Use the plural, as the passage does.
The trap: 'Medicine' is in the sentence, but that's why horns are wanted, not what is taken from the animal.
Question 5
Answer: habitatParagraph E, first sentence
What gets smaller because farms and settlements expand?
Another threat to the survival of the saiga is loss of habitat, as a result of agricultural expansion and human settlement.
Question says → Passage says
expansion of farms and settlementsagricultural expansion and human settlement
reduction in the size ofloss of
Why: 'Agricultural expansion' is the growth of farms. What it causes is 'loss of habitat', and losing habitat means the area left is smaller. The gap needs the noun 'habitat'.
The trap: 'Grasslands' or 'steppe' are possible ideas from elsewhere in the passage, but this note follows paragraph E, and E's word is 'habitat'.
Question 6
Answer: routesParagraph E, second sentence
What do the saiga lose access to that they use when migrating?
Physical barriers such as railways, pipelines and fences can block the seasonal migration routes of this transboundary species.
Question says → Passage says
loss of access tocan block
which they use for migrationthe seasonal migration routes
Why: Barriers that 'block' the routes stop the animals getting to them. The note has moved 'migration' to the end of the sentence, so the gap is the noun it described: 'routes'.
The trap: 'Barriers' and 'fences' are in the same sentence, but they are what blocks access, not what is lost. Writing 'migration' would repeat the end of the note.
Question 7
Answer: streamsParagraph G, last sentence
What has climate change caused to disappear?
many of the smaller streams that the species normally depended on have dried up and vanished
Question says → Passage says
the disappearance ofdried up and vanished
which the saiga relied onthat the species normally depended on
Why: 'Relied on' is 'depended on', and 'vanished' is 'disappeared'. The plural noun they describe is 'streams'.
The trap: 'Smaller' comes just before it, but it's an adjective. The gap needs the noun, and one word only.
TRUE / FALSE / NOT GIVEN
Questions 8-13
How to attack this block: Two NOT GIVENs, both about comparisons or consequences the passage never makes. Two FALSEs come from numbers and trends: 'evenly spread' against over 90% in one country, and 'falling' against 'steadily recovered'.
Question 8
Answer: FALSEParagraph A, last two sentences
Are saiga today spread equally across four Central Asian countries?
Today, the saiga is largely confined to a single country: Kazakhstan. This country is estimated to be home to well over 90% of the global saiga population
Question says → Passage says
distributed evenly across four nationslargely confined to a single country
Kazakhstan, Russia, Mongolia and UzbekistanKazakhstan… Russia, Mongolia and Uzbekistan accounting for the rest
Why: The four countries are right, but the split isn't even: over 90% live in Kazakhstan alone and the other three share what's left. FALSE.
The trap: The list of four countries matches word for word, which makes TRUE tempting. Check the key word 'evenly' against 'largely confined to a single country'.
Question 9
Answer: FALSEParagraph C, third sentence
Was the saiga population going down for most of the 20th century?
Legal protection ensured its survival for a while, and numbers steadily recovered throughout most of the 20th century.
Question says → Passage says
for most of the 20th centurythroughout most of the 20th century
were fallingsteadily recovered
Why: The time period matches exactly, but the direction is the opposite: numbers 'steadily recovered', so they were going up. FALSE.
The trap: The big crash came right after 1991, which is still the 20th century, and the 19th century nearly wiped them out. But 'most of the 20th century' was recovery.
Question 10
Answer: TRUEParagraph D, third and fourth sentences
Did efforts to save African rhinos have a big effect on saiga numbers?
Poaching reached epidemic levels after misguided conservationists tried to relieve the pressure on threatened African rhinos by actively encouraging the use of saiga horns
Question says → Passage says
efforts to protect rhinos in Africatried to relieve the pressure on threatened African rhinos
had a significant effectPoaching reached epidemic levels / Male saiga were almost wiped out
Why: Conservationists promoted saiga horn as a substitute for rhino horn, and poaching shot up to 'epidemic levels'. Males were nearly wiped out. That is a significant effect, so TRUE.
The trap: The statement says 'significant effect' without saying good or bad, so some people look for a positive result and pick FALSE. Any big effect counts.
Question 11
Answer: NOT GIVENParagraph G, first two sentences
Is unpredictable climate a bigger threat to wildlife in Central Asia than elsewhere?
Although well adapted to cold winters and hot summers, saiga struggle to cope with temperature extremes and unpredictable fluctuations in climate.
Question says → Passage says
unpredictable fluctuations in climateunpredictable fluctuations in climate
Why: The passage says climate fluctuations threaten the saiga. It never talks about other wildlife in the region, and it never compares Central Asia with other parts of the world. NOT GIVEN.
The trap: The phrase 'unpredictable fluctuations in climate' is copied word for word, which pushes people to TRUE. The comparison 'more than in other parts of the world' is the part with no support.
Question 12
Answer: TRUEParagraph H, second sentence
Was the Altyn Dala Initiative set up to help several kinds of animal?
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.
Question says → Passage says
formed for the benefit ofIts purpose is to protect and restore
a number of different animalsthe many species they support, including the critically endangered saiga
Why: The purpose covers 'the many species' the ecosystems support, and the saiga is only one of them ('including'). That's a number of different animals, so TRUE.
The trap: Because the whole passage is about the saiga, some people assume the project is only for saiga and answer FALSE. 'Including' tells you the saiga is one of many.
Question 13
Answer: NOT GIVENParagraph H, last sentence
Did the flagship award bring in extra international money?
In 2022 the United Nations recognised the initiative as a World Restoration Flagship project, an accolade reserved for the ten best examples
Question says → Passage says
recognition as a World Restoration Flagship projectrecognised the initiative as a World Restoration Flagship project
Why: The passage tells you about the UN award and how exclusive it is. It says nothing about money following it, so NOT GIVEN.
The trap: Paragraph I credits the initiative with the recent recovery, which can feel like the award paid off. Funding is never mentioned anywhere.
TRUE, and people doubt it because it sounds odd. Paragraph D says conservationists pushed saiga horn as a substitute for rhino horn to protect rhinos, and poaching exploded.
Paragraph G says the saiga struggles with unpredictable climate. It never compares Central Asia with the rest of the world, so NOT GIVEN.
Words from this passage worth keeping
confined to(A)
found only in a limited place
bulbous(B)
round and swollen
respite(C)
a short break from something difficult
prized(D)
valued very highly
misguided(D)
based on bad judgement, though meant well
arid(G)
very dry, with little rain
spearhead(H)
lead an effort or campaign
accolade(H)
an award or high praise
Sit this test on Langujet, then come back
The full Cambridge 21 Test 3 reading paper: all three passages, 60 minutes, marked the second you finish with a review of every answer. Already done it? Take it again and see if the same traps still get you.
Cambridge IELTS 21, Test 3, Reading Passage 1. The passage and questions belong to Cambridge University Press and are not reproduced here. We quote short extracts only as evidence for our own commentary, and the answers are published for self-marking. Get the book for the full text, or sit the test on Langujet.
FAQ
Saving the saiga: quick answers
"Saving the saiga" is Reading Passage 1 of Cambridge IELTS 21, Test 3. It covers questions 1-13 (13 marks).
Questions 1-7: Note completion and questions 8-13: TRUE / FALSE / NOT GIVEN.
2 TRUE, 2 FALSE and 2 NOT GIVEN.
Our review highlights questions 6, 10 and 11. Each one is explained in "Questions worth a second look" above.
The rest of Cambridge 21 Test 3
Passage 1 · Questions 1-13 · You're hereSaving the saiga
