SOLVED:Yellow buntings are birds that feed on butterflies, including Aglaisurticae, a species of butterfly that has bright circular coloring on its wing called an eyespot. Biologists have hypothesized that eyespots mimic owl eyes. Owls are predators of yellow buntings. In laboratory experiments using yellow buntings captured from the wild and held in captivity, individual birds were observed during sessions in which they were given butterflies that had either not be treated or had been treated to remove their eyespots. Yellow buntings were scored according to whether they showed fleeing behavior when they encountered butterflies of both types. The data were compiled into a table. How do these data support the claim that one species’ response to information can affect natural selection in another species? a. Comparison of the total number of encounters shows that more birds responded to the eyespot, a trait that will likely be selected against in natural populations of the butterfly. b. Comparison of the number of birds attacking butterflies with and without eyespots suggests that the presence of an eyespot makes butterflies more visible to predators resulting in selection against the trait. c. Comparison of the number of birds fleeing from butterflies with and without eyespots indicates that the eyespot trait has been disfavored because this trait makes the butterflies stand out to predators. d. Comparison of the number of birds fleeing from butterflies with and without eyespots suggests that selection has occurred in butterflies in favor of the eyespot trait, which mimics a predator of the bird.

University of Wisconsin - Madison

Masinde Muliro University of Science and Technology

Amherst College

Florida State University

D