LSAT 23 | Section 2 | Logical Reasoning: Q8

LR Question 8 Explanation

QUESTION TEXT: The caterpillar of the monarch butterfly feeds on…

QUESTION TYPE: Weaken

CONCLUSION: The reason the viceroy butterfly isn’t often hunted by predators is because it looks like the poisonous monarch.

REASONING: Monarchs eat milkweed and are thus poisonous to predators. Viceroys look like monarchs.

ANALYSIS: There are a couple of flaws. First, we’re never told that predators avoid monarchs. The monarchs are poisonous, but maybe predators don’t realize that.

Second, maybe predators have another way of telling whether a butterfly has eaten milkweed, apart from appearance (e.g. odor).

___________

1. The argument never said that monarchs were immune to predators.
2. We don’t know whether the viceroy is toxic to predators.
3. This is to be expected. If some predators are immune to the monarch’s poison, then they won’t be afraid to eat viceroys either.
4. CORRECT. This gives another reason why predators might avoid the viceroy: it too is poisonous.
5. So? It could still be true that the monarch is one of those species, and predators avoid the viceroy because it looks like the poisonous monarch.

Recap: The question begins with “The caterpillar of the monarch butterfly feeds on”. It is a Weaken question. Learn more about LSAT Weaken questions in our guide to LSAT Logical Reasoning question types.