Until recently, zoologists believed that all species of phocids (true seals), a pinniped family, use a different maternal strategy than do otariids (fur seals and sea lions), another pinniped family. Mother otariids use a foraging strategy. They acquire moderate energy stores in the form of blubber before arriving at breeding sites and then fast for 5 to 11 days after birth. Throughout the rest of the lactation (milk production) period, which lasts from 4 months to 3 years depending on the species, mother otariids alternately forage at sea, where they replenish their fat stores, and nurse their young at breeding sites. Zoologists had assumed that females of all phocids species, by contrast, use a fasting strategy in which mother phocids, having accumulated large energy stores before they arrive at breeding sites, fast throughout the entire lactation period, which lasts from 4 to 50 days depending on the species. However, recent studies on harbor seals, a phocids species, found that lactating females commenced foraging approximately 6 days after giving birth and on average made 7 foraging trips during the remainder of their 24-day lactation period. The maternal strategy evolved by harbor seals may have to do with their small size and the large proportion of their fat stores depleted in lactation. Harbor seals are small compared with other phocids species such as grey seals, northern elephant seals, and hooded seals, all of which are known to fast for the entire lactation period. Studies show that mother seals of these species use respectively 84 percent, 58 percent, and 33 percent of their fat stores during lactation. By comparison, harbor seals use 80 percent of their fat stores in just the first 19 days of lactation, even though they occasionally feed during this period. Since such a large proportion of their fat stores is exhausted despite feeding, mother harbor seals clearly cannot support all of lactation using only energy stored before giving birth. Though smaller than many other phocids, harbor seals are similar in size to most otariids. In addition, there is already some evidence suggesting that the ringed seal, a phocids species that is similar in size to the harbor seal, may also use a maternal foraging strategy. 1 A 1. It can be inferred from the passage that the females of all phocids species differ from the females of all otariid species in that the female phocids A. have shorter lactation periods B. consume more food during lactation C. consume a higher proportion of fat stores D. forage for food occasionally during their lactation periods E. deplete a smaller percentage of their fat stores during their lactation periods 2 D 2.The primary purpose of the passage is to A. present evidence that several phocids species use the maternal fasting strategy B. explain why the maternal strategy typically used by phocids is different from the maternal strategy used by otariids C. argue that zoologists 'current understanding of harbor seals' maternal strategy is incorrect D. describe an unexpected behavior observed in harbor seals and propose an explanation that may account for the behavior E. describe evidence concerning the maternal strategy of the harbor seal and suggest that the harbor seal belongs to the otariid rather than to the phocids family 3 E 3.According to the passage, until recently zoologists believed which of the following about all phocids mothers? A. Their fasting periods after giving birth were typically shorter than those of otariids. B. Their lactation periods were generally as long as those of comparably sized otariids. C. They acquired only moderate energy stores in the form of blubber before arriving at breeding sites. D. They depleted less than a third of their stored body fat during lactation. E. They replenished their fat stores only after their lactation period ended. 4 E 4.The author of the passage mentions ringed seals most probably in order to A. provide an example of a phocid species that fasts throughout its entire lactation period B. provide an example of a phocid species whose maternal strategy is typical of phocid species C. provide an example of a phocid species that may deplete an even higher proportion of its fat stores during lactation than harbor seals do D. support the assertion that harbor seals are smaller than many other phocids E. support the assertion that harbor seals' maternal strategy may be related to their small size.

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Until recently, zoologists believed that all species of phocids (true

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MartyMurray

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12 Sep 2023, 11:17

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BLM

For Q1, as seen in the paasage:
Mother otariids use a foraging strategy. They acquire moderate energy stores in the form of blubber before arriving at breeding sites and then fast for 5 to 11 days after birth. Zoologists had assumed that females of all phocids species, by contrast, use a fasting strategy in which mother phocids, having accumulated large energy stores before they arrive at breeding sites, fast throughout the entire lactation period, which lasts from 4 to 50 days depending on the species.

How is C wrong when it is clear that phocids accumulate large energy stores whereas otariids acquire moderate energy stores in the form of blubber before arriving at breeding sites.
I understand A is also stated.

Kindly help!

Here's the question:

1. It can be inferred from the passage that the females of all phocids species differ from the females of all otariid species in that the female phocids

Notice that the question is about "the females of ALL phocids species" and "the females of ALL otariid species."

Here's choice (C).

C. consume a higher proportion of fat stores

Now, look at what you quoted:

Zoologists had assumed that females of all phocids species, by contrast, use a fasting strategy in which mother phocids, having accumulated large energy stores before they arrive at breeding sites, fast throughout the entire lactation period, which lasts from 4 to 50 days depending on the species.

So, the passage says that zoologists HAD ASSUMED that females of all phocids species fast throughout the entire lactation period. Notice details like that one is key to getting RC questions correct.

Then, it says the following:

However, recent studies on harbor seals, a phocids species, found that lactating females commenced foraging approximately 6 days after giving birth and on average made 7 foraging trips during the remainder of their 24-day lactation period.

So, we see that some phocids do NOT fast through the entire lactation period, and thus, logically, do not "consume a higher proportion of fat stores."

So, (C) conflicts with what can be inferred from the passage.

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15 Sep 2023, 10:34

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This doesn't feel like a 700 - Level (Hard) RC Set.

Am I the only one who feels this, or am I not able to deduce the GMAT club's difficulty rating mechanism correctly?

Sajjad1994

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RitwikAgrawal

This doesn't feel like a 700 - Level (Hard) RC Set.

Am I the only one who feels this, or am I not able to deduce the GMAT club's difficulty rating mechanism correctly?

In my opinion:

Question 1: 700
Question 2: 650-700
Question 3: 600
Question 4: 550

Overall: 650

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16 Sep 2023, 12:29

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RitwikAgrawal

This doesn't feel like a 700 - Level (Hard) RC Set.

Am I the only one who feels this, or am I not able to deduce the GMAT club's difficulty rating mechanism correctly?

Just see the timer statistics and see the % of students take the questions correctly or not: if the the majority or >50% take it correctly then the passage is not on the hard side.

Coversely, it is.................simple

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Question 1:

I can see why this question might be tricky - you're dealing with a lot of information about different seal families and their behaviors. Let me walk you through this step-by-step.

Here's the key insight you need to see:

When a question asks about what's true for ALL females of one species versus ALL females of another, you need to find a characteristic that has no exceptions mentioned in the passage.

Let's think through this systematically:

Step 1: What does the passage tell us applies to ALL otariids?
The passage states that otariid lactation lasts "from 4 months to 3 years depending on the species." Every otariid mentioned follows this pattern.

Step 2: What applies to ALL phocids?
Here's where it gets interesting. The passage says phocid lactation lasts "from 4 to 50 days depending on the species." Notice that even harbor seals, which break the fasting rule, still have only a 24-day lactation period.

Step 3: Eliminate the traps
You might be tempted to pick foraging behavior differences, but here's the problem: harbor seals (which are phocids) actually do forage during lactation. So we can't say ALL phocids behave differently from otariids in terms of foraging.

Step 4: Find the universal difference
The lactation periods are consistently different across both families:
- ALL otariids: 4 months to 3 years
- ALL phocids: 4 to 50 days

Notice how even the longest phocid lactation (50 days) is still shorter than the shortest otariid lactation (4 months = ~120 days).

The answer is (A) - have shorter lactation periods.

This biological difference holds true regardless of size, foraging behavior, or any other variable mentioned in the passage.

You can check out the complete solution on Neuron by e-GMAT to master the systematic framework for handling "ALL vs ALL" inference questions and learn how to quickly spot universal characteristics in complex passages. You can also explore other GMAT official questions with detailed solutions on Neuron for structured practice here.

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