Text 1
Evolutionary biologist Valerie Hayes argues that the primary function of zebra stripes is thermoregulation. By comparing temperatures of zebras and solid-colored mammals in the same habitat, Hayes observed that the black-and-white pattern creates micro-convection currents across the skin, lowering body temperature by up to 2°C. She concludes that stripes are an adaptation to extreme heat.
Text 2
Ecologist Marcus Vance, however, contends that zebra stripes evolved to deter biting flies, such as tsetse flies, which carry lethal diseases. Vance's team found that flies rarely land on striped surfaces because the pattern disrupts their optical flow during landing. Vance notes that zebra skin temperatures do not vary significantly from those of nearby solid-brown antelopes, suggesting that any thermoregulatory effect is negligible.
Based on the passages, how do the claims and evidence presented in Text 1 correspond to the counterarguments and alternative explanations in Text 2? Match each item from Text 1 with its corresponding counterpart from Text 2.
- The claim that stripes function as an adaptation to lower body temperature.The counterargument that zebra skin temperatures do not significantly differ from those of solid-colored herbivores.
- The assertion that micro-convection currents are created across the black-and-white pattern.The alternative explanation that the pattern disrupts the optical flow of landing insects.
- The conclusion that the primary evolutionary driver of stripes is thermoregulation.The claim that the primary evolutionary purpose of stripes is to deter disease-carrying vectors like tsetse flies.