Humpback Hunters Assessment
Reading Comprehension Informational Text • Paired Evidence
Total: 12 Points
Humpback Hunters
Read the passage carefully, then answer the paired questions on pages 2–4.
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How Humpbacks Go Fishing
By Linda Brown Anderson
1 Humpback whales are big. Sometimes a whale eats by itself. Sometimes two whales eat together. Many whales swim with their mouths open. They scoop up tiny animals called krill.
2 Some humpbacks that live near the west coast of North America catch fish in a special way. When they see a group of herring, they swim down under the fish. They make a ring of bubbles that rises to the top.
3 Then the whales jump out of the water all at once in the middle of the bubble ring. Their big mouths are open and full of shiny fish.
4 Scientists wanted to hear what the whales did when they ate. They used underwater microphones to listen. The whales made loud, trumpetlike sounds while they ate.
5 The scientists also used a small camera called a Crittercam. The camera was put on the whale’s back. It showed the whales moving their big flippers as they fed.
6 At first, some people thought the whales were fighting. Whales sometimes use bubbles and loud calls to scare other whales away. Maybe they were waving flippers to push each other.
A Deep Mystery
7 Dr. Fred Sharpe had a different idea. Maybe the whales were helping each other.
8 Dr. Sharpe’s team used sonar to see under the water. Sonar sends sound waves and hears the echoes. The echoes make pictures of whales, fish, and bubbles.
9 The sonar showed that whales can use bubbles like tools. One whale swims below the fish and lets air out of its blowhole. The air makes a wall of bubbles.
10 The sonar also showed other whales pushing the fish toward the bubble wall. The fish did not want to go through the bubbles. The bubble whale swam in a circle. The bubbles closed around the fish. The fish were trapped in a bubble net.
11 The team listened with underwater microphones. The whales made trumpet calls from below. Then the whales swam up together, waved their flippers, and ate many fish.
12 The whales were working together!
13 How did the calls and flippers help catch food?
14 To test this, the researchers put herring in an aquarium. They pumped in air to make a bubble wall. The fish would not swim through the bubbles.
15 Next, the researchers played a recording of the whales’ feeding sounds. The herring swam away from the sounds. The sounds helped keep the fish inside the bubble net.
16 The scientists also used a model flipper in the tank. One side was dark and one side was white, like a real flipper. When the white side flashed, the fish swam away.
17 Now Dr. Sharpe knew how humpbacks hunt together. One whale makes a wall of bubbles. Other whales chase the fish toward the bubbles. One whale makes calls from below to push the fish up. The bubble whale swims in a circle and closes the net.
Working as a Team
18 Finally, all the whales swim up into the fish. They make trumpet calls and flash the white sides of their flippers. This keeps the fish from slipping out.
19 The researchers saw that the same whales often hunt together for many years. Each whale does the same job each time: bubble blower, first caller, and more.
20 Thanks to Dr. Sharpe and his team, we learned that humpback whales can be smart. These whales, once thought to be loners, can make long friendships and work as a team.
Directions: Answer Part A for each question, then choose the best evidence in Part B.
Page 1 of 4
Humpback Hunters Assessment • Part A & Part B Comprehension
Questions 1 & 2
Question 1 Central Idea & Key Detail
Part A: What is the central idea of the text?
A. Humpback whales prefer to hunt alone because hunting in groups causes violent fighting.
B. Dr. Sharpe invented a new underwater camera that swims directly alongside ocean animals.
C. Humpback whales can cooperate as a team using bubbles, sounds, and flippers to catch fish.
D. Herring have learned how to outsmart humpback whales by swimming straight through bubble walls.
Part B: Which detail from the text best supports the answer to Part A?
A. “Sometimes a whale eats by itself. Sometimes two whales eat together.” (Paragraph 1)
B. “At first, some people thought the whales were fighting.” (Paragraph 6)
C. “These whales, once thought to be loners, can make long friendships and work as a team.” (Paragraph 20)
D. “To test this, the researchers put herring in an aquarium.” (Paragraph 14)
Question 2 Inference & Supporting Evidence
Part A: Why did some observers initially misunderstand what the humpbacks were doing?
A. They thought the loud calls, rising bubbles, and waving flippers were signs of whales fighting.
B. They assumed the whales were stranded in shallow water and signaling to people for rescue.
C. They believed the whales were playing a game because no fish were visible from the surface.
D. They thought the whales were trying to communicate with passing research ships.
Part B: Which detail from the text best supports the answer to Part A?
A. “Many whales swim with their mouths open. They scoop up tiny animals called krill.” (Paragraph 1)
B. “Whales sometimes use bubbles and loud calls to scare other whales away.” (Paragraph 6)
C. “Dr. Sharpe’s team used sonar to see under the water.” (Paragraph 8)
D. “The researchers saw that the same whales often hunt together for many years.” (Paragraph 19)
Turn to page 3 to continue. Page 2 of 4
Humpback Hunters Assessment • Part A & Part B Comprehension
Questions 3 & 4
Question 3 Cause and Effect
Part A: How does the "bubble net" help the humpback whales catch herring?
A. It freezes the ocean water instantly so the herring are unable to move their fins.
B. It creates a circular barrier that traps the fish because they refuse to cross the bubbles.
C. It fills the water with oxygen so the herring fall asleep near the ocean surface.
D. It completely darkens the water so the fish cannot see where the whales are swimming.
Part B: Which detail from the text best supports the answer to Part A?
A. “The camera was put on the whale’s back.” (Paragraph 5)
B. “The echoes make pictures of whales, fish, and bubbles.” (Paragraph 8)
C. “The fish did not want to go through the bubbles... The fish were trapped in a bubble net.” (Paragraph 10)
D. “Next, the researchers played a recording of the whales’ feeding sounds.” (Paragraph 15)
Question 4 Scientific Method & Purpose
Part A: Why did Dr. Sharpe’s research team test bubbles, sounds, and model flippers in an aquarium?
A. To see if captive herring could learn to perform tricks for aquarium visitors.
B. To test whether specific whale behaviors directly affect and control herring movements.
C. To prove that humpback whales could be kept safely inside indoor research pools.
D. To measure whether herring prefer freshwater over cold saltwater.
Part B: Which detail from the text best supports the answer to Part A?
A. “Their big mouths are open and full of shiny fish.” (Paragraph 3)
B. “The scientists also used a small camera called a Crittercam.” (Paragraph 5)
C. “How did the calls and flippers help catch food? To test this, the researchers put herring in an aquarium.” (Paragraphs 13–14)
D. “Now Dr. Sharpe knew how humpbacks hunt together.” (Paragraph 17)
Turn to page 4 to complete the assessment. Page 3 of 4
Humpback Hunters Assessment • Part A & Part B Comprehension
Questions 5 & 6
Question 5 Text Evidence & Function
Part A: Based on the text, why do humpback whales flash the white sides of their flippers?
A. To frighten the herring and prevent them from escaping past the whales.
B. To reflect sunlight to signal other whales that the hunt is finished.
C. To attract tiny krill to the surface of the cold water.
D. To clean barnacles off the sides of their bodies as they swim upward.
Part B: Which detail from the text best supports the answer to Part A?
A. “When the white side flashed, the fish swam away.” (Paragraph 16)
B. “Dr. Sharpe’s team used sonar to see under the water.” (Paragraph 8)
C. “The team listened with underwater microphones.” (Paragraph 11)
D. “Sometimes a whale eats by itself.” (Paragraph 1)
Question 6 Analysis & Textual Evidence
Part A: What does the text reveal about how humpback whales organize their group hunting?
A. Whales hunt with completely different partners each day without any regular roles.
B. Individual whales form long-term partnerships and perform specific, assigned roles each hunt.
C. Only one whale eats during each hunt while the other whales wait for the next day.
D. Whales only cooperate when they are calves learning basic swimming skills from adults.
Part B: Which detail from the text best supports the answer to Part A?
A. “Then the whales jump out of the water all at once in the middle of the bubble ring.” (Paragraph 3)
B. “Dr. Fred Sharpe had a different idea. Maybe the whales were helping each other.” (Paragraph 7)
C. “The air makes a wall of bubbles.” (Paragraph 9)
D. “Each whale does the same job each time: bubble blower, first caller, and more.” (Paragraph 19)
Student Answer Recording Grid Record your final choices below
Q1
A: __ | B: __
Q2
A: __ | B: __
Q3
A: __ | B: __
Q4
A: __ | B: __
Q5
A: __ | B: __
Q6
A: __ | B: __
End of Assessment • Review your answers before submitting. Page 4 of 4
Humpback Hunters Answer Key
Teacher Answer Key & Guide Standards: CCSS RI.3.1, RI.3.2, RI.4.1, RI.4.2
6 Questions • 12 Points
Humpback Hunters: Paired Item Key
Passage: "How Humpbacks Go Fishing" by Linda Brown Anderson
Quick-Scoring Answer Matrix
Item 1
A: C | B: C
Central Idea
Item 2
A: A | B: B
Inference
Item 3
A: B | B: C
Cause/Effect
Item 4
A: B | B: C
Author Purpose
Item 5
A: A | B: A
Key Detail
Item 6
A: B | B: D
Text Structure
Question 1 (Central Idea) Part A: C | Part B: C
Paragraphs 17–20
Why Part A (C) is Correct: The central idea encompasses the entire text: humpback whales are not solitary fighters, but rather cooperative hunters who coordinate bubbles, acoustics, and flippers.
Distractors: A is an early misconception refuted later; B mentions only one tool; D is factually contradicted (herring avoid bubble walls).
Why Part B (C) is the Best Support: Paragraph 20 explicitly concludes that whales "can make long friendships and work as a team," directly summarizing the overarching thesis.
Distractors: Quotes A, B, and D provide isolated factual observations rather than the central synthesis of cooperation.
Question 2 (Initial Misconceptions) Part A: A | Part B: B
Paragraph 6
Why Part A (A) is Correct: Paragraph 6 states that observers initially believed the whales were fighting because the noisy calls and thrashing flippers resembled aggressive territorial displays.
Distractors: B, C, and D are fabricated interpretations unsupported by any details in the passage.
Why Part B (B) is the Best Support: The sentence in paragraph 6 explains: "Whales sometimes use bubbles and loud calls to scare other whales away," showing why observers drew that faulty conclusion.
Distractors: Quotes A, C, and D describe general krill feeding, sonar technology, or multi-year fidelity, none of which explain the fighting hypothesis.
Question 3 (Bubble Net Trap Mechanism) Part A: B | Part B: C
Paragraph 10
Why Part A (B) is Correct: The bubble net acts as an impenetrable sensory corral; the herring avoid swimming through the dense column of rising bubbles, trapping them inside.
