Critical Reasoning

The West Indian manatee, a distant relative of the elephant, returned to the sea some 50 million years ago. These thousand-pound herbivores inhabit the warm coastal waters where Americans like to play. Despite conservation efforts, criminal penalties for harming these creatures, and an overabundance of SAVE THE MANATEE! bumper stickers, none of these animals can be considered safe.

Which of the following, if true, most strongly supports the argument above?


Last year, several manatees were mysteriously killed by an unidentified toxin.

All manatees swim at depths that make them vulnerable to the blades of motorboat engines.

Most tourists are unaware of the ongoing efforts to save the manatee.


The population of manatees in the wild has dwindled to fewer than 2,500 animals.

Although dozens of manatee deaths are documented each year, many more deaths go unreported.

A - incorrect, this answer does not support the conclusion that ALL manatees are in danger
B - correct, if all manatees have a habit of swimming at depths where they can be killed or wounded by motorboat engines, then all these animals can be endangered despite the efforts aimed at saving them
C - incorrect, although this answer may seem to be the right one - however, this statement also does not present evidence supporting the claim that ALL manatees are endangered with extinction
D - incorrect, this figure neither supports nor weakens the argument
E - incorrect, we are not interested in the fact whether manatee deaths go unreported, we are looking for evidence stating what can jeopardize their existence