Critical Reasoning

Loggerhead turtles live and breed in distinct groups of which some are in Pacific Ocean and some are in Atlantic. New evidence suggests that juvenile Pacific loggerheads that feed near the Baja peninsula hatch in Japanese waters 10 000 kilometers away. Ninety-five percent of DNA samples taken from the Baja turtles match those taken from turtles at the Japanese nesting sites.

Which of the following, if true, most seriously weakens the reasoning above?

(A) Nesting sites of loggerhead turtles have been found off the Pacific coast of North America several thousands kilometers north of the Baja peninsula

(B) The distance between nesting sites and feeding sites of Atlantic loggerhead turtles is less than 5000 kilometers.

(C) Loggerhead hatchlings in Japanese waters have been declining in number for the last decade while the number of nesting sites near the Baja peninsula has remained constant.

(D) Ninety-five percent of the DNA samples taken from the Baja turtles match those taken from Atlantic loggerhead turtles.

(E) Commercial aquariums have been successfully breeding Atlantic loggerheads with Pacific loggerheads for the last five years.

I am unable to select best answer to this questions, I don't like any of them. And I am not happy with the explanation in the book.

Any help would be appreciated.

Thanks

Well, I think D pretty much covers it. If ninety-five percent of DNA samples taken from the Baja turtles match those taken from turtles at the Japanese nesting sites AND ninety-five percent of the DNA samples taken from the Baja turtles match those taken from Atlantic loggerhead turtles, then you basically get the fact that these subspecies of turtles share a whole bunch of their DNA. If we were to believe the original conclusion, then it would also mean that Atlantic turtles maybe nest in Japan! That's crazy talk right there... I don't see any turtle traveling for tens of thousands of miles just to lay its eggs...

IMO - D

Reasoning - same as above

thanks alot Dana,I think I get it now. OA is D

I think D is the best in this case.