Question: The male sage grouse has air sacs that when not inflated, lie hidden beneath the grouse’s neck feathers. During its spring courtship ritual, the male sage grouse inflates these air sacs and displays them to the female sage grouse. Some scientists hypothesize that this courtship ritual serves as a means for female sage grouse to select healthy mates.

Which one of the following, if true, most strongly supports the scientists’ hypothesis?

(A) Some female sage grouse mate with unhealthy male sage grouse.
(B) When diseased male sage grouse were treated with antibiotics, they were not selected by female sage grouse during the courtship ritual.
(C) Some healthy male sages grouse do not inflate their air sacs as part of the courtship ritual.
(D) Male sage grouse are prone to parasitic infections that exhibit symptoms visible on the birds’ air sacs.
(E) The sage grouse is commonly afflicted with a strain of malaria that tends to change as the organism that causes it undergoes mutation.

Correct Answer: D
Explanation: The question asks here to identify what supports the hypothesis of the scientist. It implies that it is required to identify the statement that strengthens the argument of the scientist.

The argument of the passage claims to conclude that ritual enables female sage to choose healthy mates. The evidence of the passage is that male sage inflates their generally hidden air sacs during the rituals. Therefore, there must be an association between judging health and inflated air sacs. The passage mainly deals with the way female sage identifies healthy grouse by the absence of marks. The answer choice depicts exactly the issue of health that is visible in the air sacs of birds. Therefore, this answer choice satisfies the argument of the passage. Hence, option D is the correct answer. Let’s take a look at the other options.

Option A

This answer states that the female sage grouse becomes mate with the sick male sage grouse. The passage mainly deals with the way female sage identifies healthy grouse by the absence of marks. The argument of the passage claims to conclude that ritual enables female sage to choose healthy mates. The evidence of the passage is that male sage inflates their generally hidden air sacs during the rituals. Therefore, there must be an association between judging health and inflated air sacs. In this answer choice, there is no connection between judging health and inflated air sacs. Therefore, the answer choice does not support the claim of the passage. The statement weakens the argument stated in the passage. Hence, option A is the incorrect answer and thereby gets eliminated.

Option B

This answer choice depicts that male sage grouse were treated with antibiotics when they suffered from diseases. They were not chosen by female sage grouses during the ritual of courtship. The passage mainly deals with the way female sage identifies healthy grouse by the absence of marks. The argument of the passage claims to conclude that ritual enables female sage to choose healthy mates. The evidence of the passage is that male sage inflates their generally hidden air sacs during the rituals. Therefore, answer choice B does not support the argument of the passage. Hence, option B is the incorrect answer and thereby gets eliminated.

Option C

The passage mainly deals with the way female sage identifies healthy grouse by the absence of marks. The argument of the passage claims to conclude that ritual enables female sage to choose healthy mates. The evidence of the passage is that male sage inflates their generally hidden air sacs during the rituals. This answer states that there are some healthy male sages who do not inflate their air sacs as a part of the ritual of courtship. Therefore, this answer choice does not explain anything about the way the female sages choose healthy grouse. The statement in this answer choice does not strengthen the argument of the passage. Hence, the answer choice C does not support the argument of the passage. Therefore, option C is the incorrect answer and thereby gets eliminated.

Option E

The passage mainly deals with the way female sage identifies healthy grouse by the absence of marks. The argument of the passage claims to conclude that ritual enables female sage to choose healthy mates. The evidence of the passage is that male sage inflates their generally hidden air sacs during the rituals. This answer choice depicts that the sage grouse is afflicted with the malaria strain that changes as the organism that causes it experiences mutation. Therefore, this answer choice does not explain anything about the way the female sages choose healthy grouse. The statement in this answer choice does not strengthen the argument of the passage. Hence, the answer choice E does not support the argument of the passage. Therefore, option E is the incorrect answer and thereby gets eliminated.

“The male sage grouse has air sacs that when not inflated, lie hidden”- is a GMAT critical reasoning topic of the GMAT exam. This GMAT critical comes with five options and candidates need to choose the one which is correct. GMAT critical reasoning tests the logical and analytical skills of the candidates.

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