Passage:
For centuries, the periodic emergences of Magicicada species—commonly known as periodical cicadas—have fascinated and bewildered biologists. Emerging from their subterranean habitats in massive swarms only once every 13 or 17 years, these insects overwhelm predators through sheer volume. In mathematical biology, researchers have long hypothesized that the prime-numbered lengths of these cycles prevent synchronization with the shorter, cyclical life stages of avian predators. By emerging at prime intervals, the cicadas minimize the frequency of overlapping years with predators whose populations fluctuate on 2-, 3-, or 4-year cycles.
To test this evolutionary hypothesis, computer models have simulated interactions between cicadas and hypothetical predators over tens of thousands of evolutionary generations. The simulations consistently demonstrate that cicada populations with non-prime cycles are rapidly driven to extinction by predators that adapt to their predictable cycles, whereas those with prime cycles survive. This computational evidence supports the theory that numerical primes act as an evolutionary shield, ensuring the cicadas' long-term survival.
Given that all the choices are true, which choice provides the most effective concluding sentence for the paragraph and the passage?
- This computational evidence supports the theory that numerical primes act as an evolutionary shield, ensuring the cicadas' long-term survival.Answer
- BNevertheless, the research indicates that periodical cicadas may face new threats from climate change as warming subterranean temperatures alter their emergence schedules.
- CInstead, these models confirm the protective nature of prime cycles, they show that mathematical patterns are deeply embedded in natural history.
- DOn the other hand, the simulations verify that cicadas, that emerge at prime-numbered intervals, are far more likely to avoid predator synchronization.