Twenty years ago, rats on a docked cargo ship came ashore and infested the island of Toumi. Since the nocturnal creatures had no natural predators, their numbers quickly multiplied—crop losses became significant and recently many people have been bitten near garbage cans. For environmental reasons, the government plans to import mongooses to prey on the rats, instead of poisoning the vermin.
Which of the following, if true, would provide the most support for the prediction that the government’s action will not have its intended effect?
A. The proposed number of mongooses to be imported is insufficient to exterminate the rats this year.
B In its natural habitat, the mongoose feeds on rodents somewhat smaller than rats.
C Recent polls have shown that the public is solidly against the proposal.
D Poison traps are a more efficient manner of exterminating rats than are mongooses.
E In their native habitat, mongooses hunt and feed from dawn to dusk.