Critical Reasoning

A male garter snake raised in captivity will begin to exhibit mating behaviors toward a female garter snake only after being confined with her for six hours, during which time the female garter snake's skin changes from green to a vibrant shade of red that is unique to female garter snakes. This length of time can be significantly shortened by disabling the male snake's vision in such a way that he is unable to see any colors or by artificially accelerating the female snake's change from green to the unique red.

Which of the following hypotheses best explains the contrast described above?


(A) A female garter snake does not have the ability to change color until she reaches adulthood.

(B) Female garter snakes change color more quickly when they are in the presence of males who belong to a different species of snake.

(C) Male garter snakes raised in captivity are more affected by visual cues than are male garter snakes who are frequently exposed to female garter snakes in the wild. your answer

(D) The rate at which female garter snakes change their skin color from green to red does not affect how long it take male garter snakes to initiate mating behaviors.

(E) The desire of a male garter snake to breed with a female snake is inhibited by the color of the female snake's skin. correct