Charles Darwin Was Initially Puzzled by the Observation That Worker

question 24

Multiple Choice

Charles Darwin was initially puzzled by the observation that worker honeybees die when they sting an intruder to their hive (the bee's stinger is ripped from the bee's abdomen, causing a fatal injury) . Based on what you know about natural selection, why did this observation complicate Darwin's theory?

• A) All defensive behaviors in nature result in the death of the defender.
• B) Such self-sacrifice is widespread in many different groups of animals.
• C) He found it hard to imagine how such behavior could evolve, since a defending worker's chance of survival is zero.
• D) The stinging apparatus appeared to be too complex to have evolved.

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Definitions:

Skeletal

Relating to or functioning as a part of the skeleton, the internal framework of the body composed of bones and cartilage.

Immediate Responses

Quick reactions or adaptations by an organism or system immediately following a stimulus or change in the environment.

Nervous

Pertaining to the nervous system, which is a complex network of nerves and cells transmitting signals between different parts of the body.

Endocrine

Pertaining to glands that secrete hormones directly into the blood rather than through a duct, influencing various bodily functions.