Many different types of animals employ one of two strategies in raising their young. Certain animals, called “r-strategists,” turn out thousands of eggs with reckless profusion, but they let them look after themselves, or be devoured by enemies, as chance will have it. Other animals, called “K-strategists,” take greater pain in the rearing and upbringing of the young. Large broods indicate an “r” life strategy; small broods imply a “K” life strategy and more care in the nurture and education of the offspring. R-strategists produce eggs wholesale, on the off chance that some two or three among them may perhaps survive an infant mortality of ninety-nine per cent, so as to replace their parents. K-strategists produce half a dozen young, or less, but bring a large proportion of these on an average up to years of discretion.
Which of these extracts best captures the main idea of this passage?
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Correct Answer: D
The main idea of this essay is that there is a direct correlation between the number of offspring a species generally produces and the type of life strategy that species employs. This idea is really only captured in the first sentence, ""Many different types of animals employ one of two strategies in raising their young." Another sentence might be better if it compared both r-strategists and K-strategists, but the other four answer choices are less succinct and direct, and usually only make half the author’s point.