托福口语 Task 4

Today, we're going to talk about a fascinating behavior in animals called 'tool use.' Now, tool use isn't just about using objects for food—it can serve other purposes, like defense or comfort. Let me give you two examples. First, consider the sea otter. When a sea otter eats a hard-shelled clam, it will float on its back, place a rock on its chest, and then smash the clam against the rock to crack it open. That’s a classic example of using a tool for feeding. But tool use can also be about protection. Take the hermit crab, for instance. Some hermit crabs don’t just use empty shells for protection—they attach sea anemones to their shells. The anemones have stinging cells that deter predators, like octopuses. So here, the crab uses an organism as a tool for defense, not for obtaining food. These examples show that tool use in animals is diverse and can serve different survival functions.