Question

Key deer, a subspecies of white-tailed deer, are only found on a few islands in the Florida Keys. They are tiny deer that weigh 45 to 65 pounds, which is very small compared to the 130- to 300-pound white-tailed deer that are found on the North American mainland. Which of the following conditions most likely resulted in the small size of the Key deer?

1. Limited size variations of deer that migrated to the islands resulted in smaller deer.

2. Limited food and water resources favored the survival of smaller deer.

3. Human influence caused increases in Key deer populations that improved genetic variation.

4. Overproduction of offspring on the mainland led to migration of small, less successful deer to the islands.

Answer 1

The correct option is limited food and water resources favored the survival of smaller deer.

Step-by-step explanation:

The islands where the Key deer lived had limited food and water resources. As migration was not possible for these species because the white-tailed deer had more adaptations as compared to them, hence they had to somehow survive in these areas with limited food and water resources. Limited food resources were the reason that the Key deer could not grow properly and hence evolved to have very little weight.