[ 351 ] Life Science GED ® TEST SCIENCE FLASH REVIEW • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • Refer to the following passage to answer the next three questions. Bufo marinus, commonly referred to as the cane toad, can measure six to nine inches long and weigh up to four pounds. The cane toad is nocturnal, breeds year-round, and releases a toxin from the shoulders that is fatal to vertebrates. It eats crawling insects, small birds, mammals, and other amphibians, including smaller cane toads. It is native to tropical America, but is permanently established in Australia. In the 1930s, sugarcane farmers imported the toads to Australia in attempts to control cane beetles. Adult cane beetles measure about 13 millimeters long and are black, hard- shelled, dome-shaped flying insects with strong legs. They eat the leaves of sugarcane while their larvae hatch underground and destroy the plant’s roots. The flying beetles and burrowing larvae are difficult to eradicate. There is no evidence that the introduced cane toads have had any impact on cane beetle populations. Cane toads have, however, had a significant impact on Australian ecology, including the depletion of native species that die when eating cane toads, the poisoning of humans and their pets, and the decline of native animals preyed upon by the toads. While many populations of native species declined in the decades following the introduction of cane toads, some are now beginning to recover. One species of crow has even learned how to eat cane toads from the underbelly in order to avoid the venom. Which of the following pieces of evidence supports the theory that the behaviors of other organisms are limiting resources for young cane toads? A. Adult cane toads often prey on juvenile cane toads. B. Cane beetle larvae are buried underground and are inaccessible to cane toads. C. Adult cane beetles have heavy exoskeletons and the ability to fly. D. Cane toad tadpoles can exist only in aquatic environments.