LSAT 69, RC Passage 4, Dodos

This is an explanation for passage 4 of LSAT 69, the June 2013 LSAT. This passage is about Stanley Temple’s theory about the Calvaria major tree and the dodo in Mauritius.

This section has the passage analysis, links to the explanations for the questions are below.

Paragraph Summaries

1. Temple thought the decline in Calvaria major trees was caused by the dodo. He only found 13 trees, and no young trees. He assumed their seeds couldn’t germinate (grow).
2. Temple thought that the seeds had a thick pit, to withstand digestion in the dodo’s gizzard. Temple thought that dodos ate Calvaria major fruit, and that without dodos, no bird would digest the pit so the seeds could germinate.
3. Temple found that Calvaria major seeds could withstand passing through the stomachs of turkeys, and some seeds germinated.
4. Later ecologists found many more Calvaria major trees. They also found that Calvaria major seeds could germinate without passing through a bird’s stomach.

Analysis

This passage has a different structure from most RC passages. First, it presents Temple’s hypothesis, which appears to be convincing. However, the passage them demolishes this hypothesis. In the final paragraph, the author makes clear they think Temple is probably wrong.

You don’t have to completely understand Temple’s idea in order to answer the questions. But it helps to reread any section that confused you the first time through.

I always do this if I’m unsure about a passage. It takes less time to reread than to read. You’ll answer questions faster when you understand better.

Temple’s Evidence (it’s weak)

Here are the facts that support Temple’s theory:

• Temple didn’t find many Calvaria major trees. (lines 10-11)
• The youngest trees he found grew around the time the dodo disappeared. (line 12, lines 16-17)
• The Calvaria major seeds have thick pits. (line 21)
• This thick pit would have let seeds withstand acid in the dodo’s gizzard. (lines 23-25)
• Temple suspected that Dodos often ate the fruits which contained these seeds.(lines 22-23)
• Temple thought that the seeds couldn’t germinate if the pit walls were unabraded. (lines 25-28)
• Temple calculated that the pits could have withstood the dodos’ stomachs (lines 34-39)
• Turkey gizzards could abrade the pit walls. Some of those seeds germinated. (lines 39-41)

That’s a lot of facts to keep track of! The most important assumptions are the following:

• The youngest Calvaria major trees that Temple found are 300 years old.
• Temple thought Calvaria major seeds can no longer germinate, since they don’t pass through dodo digestion.

The Author Thinks Temple Was Mistaken

The author only uses a couple of facts to demolish this argument:

• There are in fact many young Calvaria major trees. (lines 48-52)
• Calvaria major seeds can germinate on their own.
  (lines 54-57)

If you read carefully, you’ll notice the author is skeptical of Temple throughout the passage.

• In line 14, they say Temple assumed the seeds couldn’t germinate.
• In line 17, they say “what Temple considered the last evidence of natural germination”.
• Lines 33-34 say his argument had a semblance of rigor.

The biggest tell of all is easy to miss. In lines 19-25, the author says that Temple hypothesized that dodos ate Calvaria major fruit.

So Temple didn’t prove dodos ate the seeds! It’s just a theory. It’s possible that dodos never digested Calvaria major fruit.

A word like ‘abraded’ is hard, but you can get it from context on line 41. It’s the verb for abrasion.

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