LSAT Explanation PT 33, S1, Q8: Few animals brave the midday heat

LSAT Question Stem

Which one of the following, if true, LEAST helps to explain the silver ant's choice of scavenging times? 

Logical Reasoning Question Type

This is a Paradox question. 

Correct Answer

The correct answer to this question is E. 

LSAT Question Complete Explanation

The passage describes the behavior of silver ants in the Sahara desert, which choose to leave their nest and look for food during the midday heat. This is unusual, as most animals avoid the desert's midday heat. The silver ants search for food in the form of corpses of heat-stricken animals. However, the ants themselves can also become victims of the heat. The question asks us to identify the answer choice that LEAST helps to explain the silver ants' choice of scavenging times.

This is a Paradox question type, meaning we need to find the answer choice that does not help to explain or resolve the paradox of the silver ants' behavior.

a) If the chief predators of the silver ant must take cover from the sun during midday, this could explain why the ants choose to scavenge during that time. They can avoid their predators by going out when the predators are in hiding. This answer choice helps to explain the silver ants' behavior.

b) If the cues that silver ants use to navigate become less reliable as the afternoon progresses, this could explain why they choose to scavenge during midday. They might want to take advantage of more reliable navigation cues. This answer choice helps to explain the silver ants' behavior.

c) If other scavengers remove any remaining corpses as soon as the temperature begins to drop in the afternoon, this could explain why the silver ants choose to scavenge during midday. They might want to find food before it is removed by other scavengers. This answer choice helps to explain the silver ants' behavior.

d) If the temperature inside the silver ants' nests often exceeds the surface temperature during the hottest times of the day, this could explain why they choose to scavenge during midday. They might want to escape the even hotter temperatures inside their nests. This answer choice helps to explain the silver ants' behavior.

e) If silver ants cool themselves by climbing onto small pieces of dried vegetation to take advantage of random light breezes, this does not directly explain why they choose to scavenge during midday. This answer choice only explains how they cool themselves, which could be done at any time of the day. It does not provide a reason for their specific choice of scavenging times. Therefore, this answer choice LEAST helps to explain the silver ants' behavior.

The correct answer is E.