Question

pipevine swallowtail butterflies produce a poison that tastes bad to birds. red - spotted purple butterflies do not produce the poison, but they have adapted and now look almost exactly like pipevine swallowtail butterflies. which statement most likely explains why populations of red - spotted purple butterflies have adapted to look like pipevine swallowtail butterflies? a looking like pipevine swallowtails allows red - spotted purple butterflies to mate with pipevine swallowtails, which increases diversity in the gene pool. b looking like pipevine swallowtails allows red - spotted purple butterflies to join swallowtail populations and learn to make poison. c looking like pipevine swallowtails prevents birds from eating red - spotted purple butterflies because birds avoid the swallowtails’ poison. d looking like pipevine swallowtails prevents any organism from eating red - spotted purple butterflies because all predators avoid the swallowtails’ poison.

Explanation:

• Option A: Mating with pipevine swallowtails isn't the main reason for mimicry; the key is predator avoidance, not gene pool diversity.
• Option B: Butterflies can't learn to make poison by joining populations; poison production is genetic, not a learned trait.
• Option C: Pipevine swallowtails are poisonous to birds. By mimicking them, red - spotted purple butterflies trick birds (their predators) into thinking they are also poisonous, so birds avoid eating them. This is a classic example of Batesian mimicry.
• Option D: Saying "any organism" is too broad. The text only mentions birds as a predator, and other predators might not be deterred by the pipevine swallowtail's poison.

Answer:

C. Looking like pipevine swallowtails prevents birds from eating red - spotted purple butterflies because birds avoid the swallowtails’ poison.