A researcher claims that reef-building corals can adapt to warmer waters over generations through changes in the populations of symbiotic algae they host, allowing some reefs to survive moderate warming.
Which finding, if true, would most strongly support the researcher's claim?
- A
Coral spawning typically takes place at certain times of year.
- B
Some corals are more colorful than others.
- Ccheck_circle
After repeated heat waves, surviving corals on a reef showed a higher proportion of heat-tolerant symbiotic algae than they had before, and bleaching declined in the next warm season.
- D
Coral reefs support a large variety of fish species.
Explanation
A documents both the proposed mechanism (shift in symbiont populations) and the predicted outcome (less bleaching). B, C, and D are background facts.