Zoologist: In the Lake Champlain area, as the North American snowshoe hare population grows, so do the populations of...

Annie on October 23, 2019

@Ryan-Mahabir,

The Zoologist's argument starts off explaining the cycle that occurs between hares and predators in the Lake Champlain area. The last two sentences take a bit of a diversion though and connect this idea to sunspot activity.

Therefore, answers which will support this argument are going to connect sunspot activity and the predator-hare cycle. However, this question is set up for you to look for the answer that doesn't support the argument. So you'll want to eliminate the answers that connect sunspots and the predator-hare cycle.

(A) is incorrect. This answer states that sun spots have an affect on predator populations. This has a direct effect on the cycle of predator and hare populations.

(B) is correct. This answer states that weather patterns have an affect both with and without sunspots. Thus, it's saying sunspots don't really have an effect. You're looking for an answer which does NOT connect sunspots to the hare-predator cycle, and this one works.

(E) is incorrect. The nutritional value of food can have an effect on whether a population lives long and healthy lives. If more hares are eating good nutrition, they're likely to live longer, and this will change the predator-hare cycle. Thus, this answer choice demonstrates sunspots having an affect on the cycle.