Bunuel wrote:
GMAT weekly questions
Bufo marinus toads, fierce predators that will eat frogs, lizards, and even small birds,
are native to South America but were introduced into Florida during the 1930âs in an attempt to control pests in the stateâs vast sugarcane fields.
A. are native to South America but were introduced into Florida during the 1930âs in an attempt to control
B. are native in South America but were introduced into Florida during the 1930âs as attempts to control
C. are natives of South America but were introduced into Florida during the 1930âs in an attempt at controlling
D. had been native to South America but were introduced to Florida during the 1930âs as an attempt at controlling
E. had been natives of South America but were introduced to Florida during the 1930âs as attempts at controlling
Choice A is best. The phrasing are native to correctly suggests that the toad species in indigenous to, and still exists in, South America.
In B, native in is unidiomatic; in C and E, natives of illogically suggests that each toad now in Florida hails from South America.
In D and E, had been inaccurately implies that the toads are no longer native, or indigenous, to South America, and introduced to Florida is unidiomatic. Both as attempts in B and E and as an attempt in D are wrong because the attempt consists not of the toads themselves, but of their introduction into the environment.
The correct phrase, in an attempt, should be completed by an infinitive (here, to control), as in A.
Answer: A.