SAT OwlIn many species of songbirds, only males sing. In the plain-tailed wren of South America, however, males and females sing together in closely coordinated duets, each bird alternating syllables so rapidly that the song sounds as though it comes from a single bird. Neuroscientists studying the wrens found that each bird's brain responds more strongly to the full duet than to its own part sung alone. This finding suggests that ______
Which choice most logically completes the text?
female plain-tailed wrens learn to sing before males do.
the wrens' brains may process the duet as a single unit rather than as two separate songs.
plain-tailed wrens are unable to hear the songs of other bird species.
most songbird species will eventually develop duet singing.
Show answer and explanation
Answer: B
Each bird's brain reacts more strongly to the combined song than to its own half. That suggests the brain treats the whole duet, not the individual part, as the meaningful signal. Choice B states this. The other choices introduce claims about learning age, hearing, or evolution that the text gives no basis for.
Choice A might seem related because the text discusses females singing, but nothing in it addresses which sex learns first.
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