DESCOMUNXXI

SOURCE: www.ets.org

TEXT: Paragraph 5

Overfishing and overdiscarding may thus contribute to a syndrome known as “fishing down of food webs,” whereby we eliminate apex (top) predators and large species while transforming the ocean into a simplified system increasingly dominated by microbes, jellyfish, ocean-bottom invertebrates, plankton, and planktivores. The strongest evidence for the fishing down phenomenon exists in global catch statistics that show alarming shifts in species composition from high-value, near-bottom species to lower-value, open-ocean species. In the last three decades of the twentieth century, the global fishing fleet doubled in size and technology advanced immeasurably. Despite increased effort and technology, total catch stabilized, but landing rates (rates at which species are caught) of the most valuable species fell by 25 percent.

QUESTION 8:

What does paragraph 5 suggest is the reason why landing rates of the most valuable species fell 25 percent in the last three decades of the twentieth century?

• (A) Changes in technology led many fishers to shift from a focus on near-bottom species to lower-value open-ocean species.

• (B) Around the world, the number of people and ships involved in the fishing trade declined because of changes in the demand for fish.

• (C) The total amount of fish in the ocean decreased significantly, leading to a steady decrease in global total catch.

• (D) The most valuable species make up a much smaller percentage of the total sea population than they used to.

Paste as "Subject" your answer, letter (A), (B), (C), or (D).
In the Comment section, please explain your reasoning.