Question

a mass of strange ferns embraces a trunk high among the treetops. they look like a giant tangle of floppy green antlers, below their fork - shaped fronds and clear into the core of this lush knot of greenery are brown, disc - shaped plants. these, too, are ferns. they are even the same species. together these individuals form a society: a type of society that has only ever been observed in animals, especially bees, termites, and ants. staghorn ferns — and possibly other plants — appear to work together, each taking on different tasks that together aid their society. kevin burns is a biologist at victoria university of wellington in new zealand. he first became familiar with the ferns while working on lord howe, an isolated island between australia and new zealand. he took notes on local island epiphytes (epiphytes — plants that grow on other plants — and one species caught his eye: the staghorn fern. the staghorn fern (platycerium bifurcatum) is native to parts of mainland australia and indonesia, too. “i realized,” burns recalls, these ferns “never occur alone.” some of the larger clusters were massive. they contained hundreds of individuals, and burns soon realized each one of those individuals was doing a different thing.” he likens the fern colonies to an upside - down umbrella. some with long, green, wavy “strap” fronds appeared to direct rainwater to the center of the clump. there, ...
question 14
paragraph 1 contributes to the overall passage by
a. introducing interesting characteristics of staghorn ferns.
b. explaining how staghorn ferns survive high in the treetops.
c. highlighting the variety of plant species that can coexist together.
d. showing how different species must rely on each other to survive.

Explanation:

To determine the contribution of Paragraph 1, we analyze each option:

• Option A: Paragraph 1 describes the physical appearance of staghorn ferns (e.g., "look like a giant tangle of floppy green antlers... two of this hash knot of greenery are brown, disc - shaped plants") and introduces their social - like behavior ("form a society; a type of society that has only been observed in animals... appear to work together"). This matches the idea of introducing interesting characteristics of staghorn ferns.
• Option B: Paragraph 1 does not focus on explaining how staghorn ferns survive high in the treetops. It mainly describes their appearance and social - like behavior, not survival mechanisms.
• Option C: The paragraph is centered on staghorn ferns, not highlighting the variety of plant species that can coexist. It only mentions other plants in passing in relation to the staghorn ferns' society.
• Option D: The paragraph does not show how different species must rely on each other to survive. It focuses on the staghorn ferns' own social - like behavior within their species (and possibly with ants and other plants, but not on the necessity of inter - species reliance for survival).

Answer:

A. introducing interesting characteristics of staghorn ferns.