Adult frogs are vulnerable to dehydration because of their highly permeable skins. Unlike large adult frogs, small a...

kens on June 21, 2020

September 2009 SEC 5 Q13

Can you explain why B is incorrect? How can we know the climate condition in other regions within the peninsula? Thanks in advance!

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shunhe on June 28, 2020

Hi @kenken,

Thanks for the question! So (B) is actually the opposite of the correct answer choice. Let’s take another look at the passage. Small adult frogs can’t live in dry (arid) places because of moisture requirements, whereas large adult frogs have a more flexible living climate. And these moisture requirements determine where they can live in the Yucatán, which is dry in the north and wet in the south.

Now we’re asked for something that’s most strongly supported by the passage; in other words, this is a must be true question. So take a look at (B), which tells us that frogs living in wet areas weigh more on average than frogs in dry areas. But we know that small frogs can’t live in dry areas, which means they all live in wet areas. Which would bring down the overall weight of those areas. If anything, frogs living in wet areas should weigh less than frogs in dry areas. So (B) is the opposite of what we would expect from the passage, and we can eliminate it.

We don’t necessarily know the climate conditions for sure in other regions within the peninsula, but we do know that the north is dry, and the south is wet. And we know that large frogs can live in both places, whereas small frogs can only live in one kind of place (wet). And so that’s how we can get to (C), that large frogs can live in more places than small frogs can.

Hope this helps! Feel free to ask any other questions that you might have.