Young whales, not yet ready to mate, tend to stay out in the open ocean and move continually. Barnacle larvae, looking to find a whale to attach themselves to, are unable to latch onto these young whales. Adult whales, however, move into warm, shallow water to mate, and stay more or less in one place while mating, giving the barnacles an opportunity to attach to them. Surprisingly, young sperm whales, even though they tend to stay in the shallower water where they are born for the first year of their life, are found not to have many barnacles growing on them
Which of the following, if true, best helps to explain this surprising finding?
a)The chemical cue released by whales into the water, which lets barnacle larvae know there is a whale nearby, is lacking in sperm whales.
b)A whale carrying a very large barnacle population on its skin has greater difficulty attracting a mate.
c)The population of barnacle larvae can vary greatly from one shallow area of the ocean to another.
d)Barnacle larvae are most prevalent and can survive for the longest periods of time in warm, shallow water.
e)The stronger currents out in the open ocean do not themselves knock barnacles loose
Please explain option b ?![]()
Which of the following, if true, best helps to explain this surprising finding?
a)The chemical cue released by whales into the water, which lets barnacle larvae know there is a whale nearby, is lacking in sperm whales.
b)A whale carrying a very large barnacle population on its skin has greater difficulty attracting a mate.
c)The population of barnacle larvae can vary greatly from one shallow area of the ocean to another.
d)Barnacle larvae are most prevalent and can survive for the longest periods of time in warm, shallow water.
e)The stronger currents out in the open ocean do not themselves knock barnacles loose
Please explain option b ?