Read the text. For questions 8.1–8.5, use the word given in brackets to form a word that fits the gap. The text must be logical and correct in both grammar and spelling. Write the missing word in the space provided.

ARE JELLYFISH GOING TO TAKE OVER THE OCEANS?

Another British summer and another set of headlines about swarms of jellyfish set to ruin your holiday. But news that jellyfish numbers may be rising carries 8.1. (IMPLY) far beyond the interrupted pastimes of the sunburnt masses.

Jellyfish seem to thrive on the chaos humans create. Overfishing wipes out the creature’s predators and 8.2. (CONSIDER) warmer water, resulting from climate change, contributes to their spread. Another problem is pollution from fertilisers, which leads to the loss of oxygen in the oceans. It turns out that jellyfish are incredibly tolerant of this 8.3. (DEPRIVE) , much more than other sea creatures. And the great mixing of species transported across the world in the ballasts of ships opens up new, vulnerable ecosystems to these super-adaptors.

However, because of the paucity of historical records, many jellyfish experts are 8.4. (HESITATE) in declaring whether a global trend exists. Headlines dating back as far as 1906 show that all through the decades there were periods when the numbers of jellyfish in certain locations were described as 8.5. (PRECEDENCE) but that doesn’t prove that their population worldwide is growing. In all likelihood, we are going to see more jellyfish, but whether or not we are doomed to oceans dominated by them is hard to say at the moment.

adapted from www.theguardian.com