Use the passage from “The Aunt, the Butterfly, and Their Chemical Warfare With the Oregano Plan” by Nsikan Akpan to answer the question.

Question

Connection: Large Blue caterpillars do not pose a significant threat to the oregano plant.

Which piece of evidence from the passage supports this connection? Select the two correct answers.

A. "And though Myrmica might lose individual battles to the butterflies, the ants are invasive enough that their total populations aren’t at risk of being harmed by the butterflies."

B. "And though Myrmica might lose individual battles to the butterflies, the ants are invasive enough that their total populations aren’t at risk of being harmed by the butterflies."

C. "And though Myrmica might lose individual battles to the butterflies, the ants are invasive enough that their total populations aren’t at risk of being harmed by the butterflies."

D. "But if butterfly larvae tried to trick the wrong patsies—non-Mymirca ants—they’d likely get eaten."

E. "From an evolutionary perspective, Thomas and Barbero say that the Large Blue butterflies gained an advantage by using scents to glean which oregano plants are fighting off Myrmica invasions."

Answer 1

The two pieces of evidence that support the connection that large blue caterpillars do not pose a significant threat to the oregano plant are:

A. "And though Myrmica might lose individual battles to the butterflies, the ants are invasive enough that their total populations aren’t at risk of being harmed by the butterflies."

E. "From an evolutionary perspective, Thomas and Barbero say that the Large Blue butterflies gained an advantage by using scents to glean which oregano plants are fighting off Myrmica invasions."

These statements suggest that while there may be interactions between the caterpillars and the oregano plants, the overall impact on the oregano plants is not significant due to the resilience and invasiveness of the ants.