Species interdependence in nature confers many
benefits on the species involved, but it can also become a
point of weakness when one species involved in the rela-
tionship is affected by a catastrophe. Thus, flowering
(5) plant species dependent on insect pollination, as opposed
to self-pollination or wind pollination, could be endan-
gered when the population of insect-pollinators is depleted
by the use of pesticides.
In the forests of New Brunswick, for example,
(10) various pesticides have been sprayed in the past 25 years
in efforts to control the spruce budworm, an economi-
cally significant pest. Scientists have now investigated
the effects of the spraying of Matacil, one of the anti-
budworm agents that is least toxic to insect-pollinators.
(15) They studied Matacil’s effects on insect mortality in a
wide variety of wild insect species and on plant fecun-
dity, expressed as the percentage of the total flowers on
an individual plant that actually developed fruit and
bore seeds. They found that the most pronounced
(20) mortality after the spraying of Matacil occurred among
the smaller bees and one family of flies, insects that were
all important pollinators of numerous species of plants
growing beneath the tree canopy of forests. The fecun-
dity of plants in one common indigenous species, the
(25) red-osier dogwood, was significantly reduced in the
sprayed areas as compared to that of plants in control
plots where Matacil was not sprayed. This species is
highly dependent on the insect-pollinators most vulner-
able to Matacil. The creeping dogwood, a species similar
(30) to the red-osier dogwood, but which is pollinated by
large bees, such as bumblebees, showed no significant
decline in fecundity. Since large bees are not affected by
the spraying of Matacil. these results and weight to the
argument that spraying where the pollinators are sensi-
(35) tive to the pesticide used decreases plant fecundity.
The question of whether the decrease in plant fecun-
dity caused by the spraying of pesticides actually causes
a decline in the overall population of flowering plant
species still remains unanswered. Plant species dependent
(40) solely on seeds for survival or dispersal are obviously
more vulnerable to any decrease in plant fecundity that
occurs, whatever its cause. If, on the other hand, vegeta-
tive growth and dispersal (by means of shoots or runners)
are available as alternative reproductive strategies for a
(45) species, then decreases in plant fecundity may be of little
consequence. The fecundity effects described here are
likely to have the most profound impact on plant species
with all four of the following characteristics: a short life
span, a narrow geographic range, an incapacity for vege-
(50) tative propagation, and a dependence on a small number
of insect-pollinator species. Perhaps we should give special
attention to the conservation of such plant species since
they lack key factors in their defenses against the envi-
ronmental disruption caused by pesticide use.
1. Which of the following best summarizes the main point
of the passage?
(A) Species interdependence is a point of weakness for
some plants, but is generally beneficial to insects
involved in pollination.
(B) Efforts to control the spruce budworm have had
deleterious effects on the red-osier dogwood.
(C) The used of pesticides may be endangering certain
plant species dependent on insects for pollination.
(D) The spraying of pesticides can reduce the fecundity
of a plant species, but probably does not affect its
overall population stability.
(E) Plant species lacking key factors in their defenses
against human environmental disruption will
probably become extinct.
2. According to the author, a flowering plant species whose
fecundity has declined due to pesticide spraying may
not experience an overall population decline if the plant
species can do which of the following?
(A) Reproduce itself by means of shoots and runners.
(B) Survive to the end of the growing season.
(C) Survive in harsh climates.
(D) Respond to the fecundity decline by producing more
flowers.
(E) Attract large insects as pollinators
3. The passage suggests that the lack of an observed
decline in the fecundity of the creeping dogwood
strengthens the researchers conclusions regarding
pesticide use because the
(A) creeping dogwood its a species that does not
resemble other forest plants
(B) creeping dogwood is a species pollinated by a
broader range of insect species than are most
dogwood species
(C) creeping dogwood grows primarily in regions that
were not sprayed with pesticide, and so served as a
control for the experiment
(D) creeping dogwood is similar to the red-osier
dogwood, but its insect pollinators are known to be
insensitive to the pesticide used in the study
(E) geographical range of the creeping dogwood is
similar to that of the red-osier dogwood, but the
latter species relies less on seeds for reproduction
4. The passage suggests that which of the following is true
of the forest regions in New Brunswick sprayed with
most anti-budworm pesticides other than Matacil?
(A) The fecundity of some flowering plants in those
regions may have decreased to an even greater
degree than in the regions where Matacil is used.
(B) Insect mortality in those regions occurs mostly
among the larger species of insects, such as
bumblebees.
(C) The number of seeds produced by common plant
species in those regions is probably comparable to
the number produced where Matacil is sprayed.
(D) Many more plant species have become extinct in
those regions than in the regions where Matacil is
used.
(E) The spruce budworm is under better control in those
regions than in the regions where Matacil is sprayed.
5. It can be inferred that which of the following is true of
plant fecundity as it is defined in the passage?
(A) A plant’s fecundity decreases as the percentage of
unpollinated flowers on the plant increases
(B) A plant’s fecundity decreases as the number of
flowers produced by the plant decreases.
(C) A plant’s fecundity increases as the number of
flowers produced by the plant increases.
(D) A plant’s fecundity is usually low if the plant relies
on a small number of insect species for pollination.
(E) A plant’s fecundity is high if the plant can reproduce
quickly by means of vegetative growth as well as by
the production of seeds.
6. It can be inferred from the passage that which of the
following plant species would be LEAST likely to
experience a decrease in fecundity as a result of the
spraying of a pesticide not directly toxic to plants?
(A) A flowering tree pollinated by only a few insect
species
(B) A kind of insect-pollinated vine producing few
flowers
(C) A wind-pollinated flowering tree that is short-lived
(D) A flowering shrub pollinated by a large number of
insect species
(E) A type of wildflower typically pollinated by larger
insects
7. Which of the following assumptions most probably
underlies the author’s tentative recommendation in
lines 51-54?
(A) Human activities that result in environmental
disruption should be abandoned.
(B) The use of pesticides is likely to continue into the
future.
(C) It is economically beneficial to preserve endan-
gered plant species.
(D) Preventing the endangerment of a species is less
costly than trying to save an already endangered
one.
(E) Conservation efforts aimed at preserving a few well-
chosen species are more cost-effective than are
broader-based efforts to improve the environment.