Question

questions 1 through 3 refer to the following.
on the western side of the ocean, movements of people and ideas preceded atlantic - connection. great empires - in the valley of mexico, on the mississippi river, - had collapsed or declined in the centuries before 1492.
at cahokia, established on a flat trans - atlantic voyage, the mississippian civilization flourished. their position in mexico, which was a center of aztec, and military might. tenochtitlan (the aztec capital), held 200,000 people, a population greater than in the largest city in mainland britain at the time.
the mississippian culture spread east and west from its center, the city of cahokia, on the mississippi river near the site of modern - st. louis. it was an successor to earlier cultures. evidence of which can be seen in the great mounds that they built. cahokia declined and was ultimately abandoned completely in the later thirteenth century. throughout the southeast, smaller mound - building centers continued.
karen ordahl kupperman, historian, the atlantic in world history, 2012
which of the following contributed most significantly to the population trend in pre - columbian mexico described in the excerpt?
a migration in pursuit of fertile lands
b trade and settlement resulting from maize cultivation
c low birth rates and high death tolls as a result of european diseases
d internal conflict between groups causing political instability

Explanation:

The passage describes the pre - Columbian era in Mexico and the Mississippi region. European diseases brought by the Columbians had a devastating impact on the indigenous populations in the Americas, leading to high death tolls and significant depopulation. Low birth rates and high death tolls as a result of European diseases contributed most significantly to the depopulation trend in pre - Columbian Mexico. Migration in pursuit of fertile lands, trade and settlement from maize cultivation, and internal conflict between groups were not as impactful as the introduction of European diseases in terms of depopulation.

Answer:

C. Low birth rates and high death tolls as a result of European diseases