LSAT 158 | Section 2 | Logical Reasoning: Q5

LR Question 5 Explanation

QUESTION TEXT: On the plains where it lives, an individual zebra …

QUESTION TYPE: Paradox

PARADOX: Zebras’ stripes make them very visible to their predators (lions) yet they still seem to survive.

ANALYSIS: To solve this paradox, we need to explain why the zebras are still surviving despite this disadvantage of high visibility.

It is unlikely that you’ll predict exactly the answer that they write. But it’s still useful to come up with some examples so you know what types of things to look for.

Maybe:

• They have a significant advantage that makes them survive, so visibility doesn’t matter (e.g. they’re way faster than lions)
• The stripes confuse the lions

You can come up with a bunch. The point is that we need the correct answer to tell us why this disadvantage doesn’t seem to be that much of a disadvantage (they’re still surviving).

___________

1. This tells us that camouflage on the plains is especially difficult, but we already know that zebras don’t blend in at all. So this doesn’t give us any new information.
2. Okay, so zebras ignore lions that aren’t actively hunting. But we care about the lions that are actually hunting, and how the zebras are still surviving.
3. If anything, this makes the situation more confusing. If lions are camouflaged they have an additional advantage, so how are zebras surviving?
4. We don’t care that lions share food. This is completely irrelevant.
5. CORRECT. The stripes are confusing the lions by making it harder to track one zebra when they run together. So even though the stripes are very visible, they are still protecting the zebras by making pursuit harder, which explains why they’re surviving.