PrepTest 150

Incorrect. This answer choice doesn't explain why mosquitos have an easier time in a wetland drought when they usually prefer water. Since there would be no pesticides either in times of rain or drought in a wetland, this answer doesn't explain the inverted behavior in this habitat.

Incorrect. This answer choice doesn't explain why mosquitos have an easier time in a wetland drought when they usually prefer water. Since there would be barely any humans either in times of rain or drought in a wetland, this answer doesn't explain the inverted behavior in this habitat.

Correct. Argument or Facts:
Facts

Question Type:
Paradox

Stimulus Summary:
Mosquitos are aquatic and thus outbreaks tend to happen after a lot of rain. This might lead you to expect wetlands to always have mosquito issues, but these areas have worse mosquito outbreaks after droughts.

Answer Anticipation:
There must be something different about wetlands that generally causes issues for mosquitos. Maybe they're too wet, and a drought brings them to a level that's equivalent to a normal area after too much rain?

Answer Explanation:
This answer is correct, but it's tricky, so bear with us. First, it's important to note that the stimulus establishes that aquatic insects thrive after wet weather. The stimulus applies it to mosquitos, but the premise is about aquatic insects. So when this answer states that the predator insects are aquatic, we can apply the principle from the stimulus to this answer to know that they thrive in wet weather.

With that established, we can see how this resolves the paradox. As the weather dries out, these predator species see their population go down, which means the prey population—in this case, mosquitos—will increase. And the last trick this question tries to pull on us helps us get around the problem that the drought would presumably hurt mosquito populations as well. That trick is that the stimulus states mosquito outbreaks are worse in wetlands after drought conditions, not that they're as bad as they are in other areas. So the lack of predator species leading to a slightly higher mosquito population is enough to resolve a paradox about why wetlands have worse outbreaks in times of drought than in times of rain.

Key Takeaway:
If a Paradox question presents logic/an argument, you're free to apply it to situations brought up in the answer choices. It's rare you'll have to do this, but it can make for particularly difficult questions when it does happen!

Incorrect. Do some of these breeds thrive in drought conditions? This answer doesn't connect the number of species to relative population levels in drought vs. normal times in the wetlands.

Incorrect. While this answer provides a difference in wetlands in times of drought, it doesn't connect it to mosquito populations. Do they thrive with new plant growth, or suffer from it? Without the answer to that question, it can't be determined if this answer resolves the paradox.