The American chestnut, once a dominant tree across the eastern United States, was nearly eliminated by an introduced fungal blight in the early 20th century. Few mature chestnuts survive today, though stumps continue to send up shoots that grow for some years before succumbing to the same blight. Ongoing research efforts seek to restore the species through breeding with blight-resistant relatives or through genetic modification.
Which choice most logically completes the text? The passage suggests that the American chestnut's situation is best described as _______
- Acheck_circle
persisting in a constrained form while restoration approaches are developed
- B
fully recovered from the early-20th-century blight
- C
wholly extinct with no remaining individuals of any kind
- D
unaffected by the introduced fungal blight
Explanation
Stumps producing short-lived shoots while research proceeds supports B. A, C, D contradict the passage.