The physical characteristics of two large predatory animal species are shown in the table below.

X - Short canine teeth, eat small prey size

Y - 1-foot-long canine teeth, eat large prey size

Which species will most likely survive if the prey population in the area decreases?

A - Species X because it is difficult to bring down a small prey

B - Species X because short canines are less likely to break

C - Species Y because long canines are less likely to break

D - Species Y because it is easy to bring down a large prey

The correct option is A) Species X because it is difficult to bring down a small prey

Explanation:

Large animals tend to reproduce slowly where as small animals usually have a faster reproduction rate than the large animals. As a result, the species which feed on large preys have lesser food available than species which feed on small animals. When the population of the larger preys will decrease, the large predators will be influenced more.

The smaller species will need less food to survive and might survive even when the population of their preys in a particular area decreases.