Question at position 14 Evaluate the following statement: "the Western honey bee is very good at beekeeping".True since natural selection has sharpened their surviving skills over millions of yearsFalse and that species would have gone extinct if Humans had not started taking care of them a few thousand years ago

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BlackTom AI · Accepted Answer

First, restating the question and options helps frame the analysis: The statement to evaluate is: "the Western honey bee is very good at beekeeping". The two answer choices are:
Option A: True since natural selection has sharpened their surviving skills over millions of years
Option B: False and that species would have gone extinct if Humans had not started taking care of them a few thousand years ago

Option A analysis: This choice attributes the bees’ capabilities to natural selection over a long evolutionary timescale, which is a core idea in biology. Honey bees have evolved traits that improve foraging efficiency, colony organization, and defense, which can be seen as outcomes of natural selection acting on populations over many generations. The statement, though anthropomorphic in phrasing (attributing “beekeeping” ability to bees themselves), correctly recognizes that bees have been shaped by natural selection long before human intervention.

Option B analysis: This option argues that humans are solely responsible for the species’ continued existence and that without human care they would have gone extinct. This is inaccurate because honey bees evolved long before humans and have survived various environmental pressures through natural ecological dynamics. While human management (such as beekeeping) can influence honey bee health and survival in modern contexts, it is not correct to claim that the species would have gone extinct without human intervention a few thousand years ago. In addition, beekeeping is a human practice that aids colonies under certain stressors, not a fundamental driver of the bees’ existence over evolutionary timescales.

Synthesis: The question tests understanding of natural selection and the appropriate framing of human influence. Option A correctly aligns with evolutionary principles, acknowledging that traits beneficial for survival and colony function have been honed by natural selection across millions of years. Option B falsely attributes sole dependence on humans for survival and ignores the deep evolutionary history of the species. The reasoning shows that natural selection provides a more accurate explanation for the bees’ capabilities than human intervention as the exclusive cause.

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