Digital SAT Reading and Writing Practice Question #1188

The syrphid fly, *Eristalis tenax*, commonly known as the drone fly, exhibits striking resemblance to honeybees in its striped abdomen and fuzzy body. This morphological similarity led early naturalists to hypothesize that the drone fly employs Batesian mimicry, a strategy where a harmless species imitates a noxious one to deter predators. Field observations have shown that avian predators, such as insectivorous birds, often exhibit hesitation or avoidance behavior when encountering drone flies, similar to their reactions to actual stinging insects. However, studies also indicate that naive, juvenile birds are less discriminating. Based on the passage, which of the following observations *most strongly supports* the hypothesis that *Eristalis tenax*'s resemblance to honeybees is an evolved defense mechanism through Batesian mimicry?