Final answer:
Ruminant animals like goats and cows have a multi-chambered stomach comprising rumen, reticulum, omasum, and abomasum, which allows them to efficiently digest plant material. The correct option is b) Ruminant
Step-by-step explanation:
The term that best defines an animal that has a stomach with four compartments is b) Ruminant. Ruminants are animals with specialized stomachs adapted to digest large amounts of plant material, a process requiring a multi-chambered stomach, sometimes referred to as a polygastric stomach. This unique stomach is divided into four compartments: the rumen, reticulum, omasum, and abomasum.
Ingested plant material undergoes extensive fermentation in the first two chambers (the rumen and reticulum) with the aid of microbes that break down cellulose. The material, now called cud, is regurgitated, chewed again, and then passed to the omasum where water is removed.
Finally, it moves to the abomasum, or 'true' stomach, where it is further digested by enzymes. This complex process allows ruminants to obtain nutrients from plant-based roughage, which monogastric animals cannot efficiently digest. The correct option is b) Ruminant