Harvester-ant colonies live for fifteen to twenty years, though individual worker ants live only a year. The way a colony behaves changes steadily in a predictable pattern as the colony grows older and larger. For the first few years, the foragers behave quite aggressively, searching out and vigorously defending new food sources, but once a colony has reached a certain size, its foragers become considerably less aggressive.
If the statements above are true, which of the following can most properly be concluded on the basis of them?
A) As a result of pressure from neighbors, some colonies do not grow larger as they become older.
B) Unpredictable changes in a colony's environment can cause changes in the tasks that the colony must perform if it is to continue to survive.
C) The reason a mature colony goes out of existence is that younger, more aggressive colonies successfully outcompete it for food.
D) The pattern of changing behavior that a colony displays does not arise from a change in the behavior of any individual worker ant or group of worker ants.
E) A new colony comes into existence when a group of young, aggressive workers leaves a mature colony and sets up on its own.
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If the statements above are true, which of the following can most properly be concluded on the basis of them?
A) As a result of pressure from neighbors, some colonies do not grow larger as they become older.
B) Unpredictable changes in a colony's environment can cause changes in the tasks that the colony must perform if it is to continue to survive.
C) The reason a mature colony goes out of existence is that younger, more aggressive colonies successfully outcompete it for food.
D) The pattern of changing behavior that a colony displays does not arise from a change in the behavior of any individual worker ant or group of worker ants.
E) A new colony comes into existence when a group of young, aggressive workers leaves a mature colony and sets up on its own.
CR09740.02