GMAT SECTION 3: VERBAL ABILITY Exam Questions and Answers

QUESTION: 11

The Florida panther, known for its distinctive characteristics, including a kinked tail and cowlicks, is nearing extinction with the help of scientists and government officials. Though once abundant in Florida, by the end of the twentieth century, only approximately 30 Florida panthers remained. Efforts to preserve the panthers had focused on shielding them from human encroachment with the hope that they could develop sustainable numbers to survive as a species. However, pressure from development caused officials to grow impatient and shift their strategy and goals.
In 1995, new breeds of female panthers were brought to Florida from Texas to bolster the population. The change has been dramatic. In 1990, 88% of the panthers in Florida had the distinct kinked tail. By 2000, five years after the introduction of the Texas panthers, not a single kitten born to the Texas females had a kinked tail. The breed known as the Florida panther is now on an expedited, ineluctable road to extinction — with the assistance of wildlife protection agencies.
If the goal was to have any kind of panther in Florida, it has been realized. Since the introduction of the Texas panthers, the panther population in Florida has risen to approximately 80 mixed-breed panthers. However, this “success” could portend a tragic trend in wildlife management in the United States. We cannot and should not create genetically mixed species as a means of achieving a compromise between the needs of development and a species’ survival. This type of species tampering is a perversion of the ideal of wildlife management and will irrevocably transform our national landscape.

The primary goal of this passage is to

demonstrate the fragility of an endangered species.
demonstrate the importance of effective wildlife management.
argue that mixing species to ensure a species’ survival is wrong.
demonstrate the effectiveness of mixing species.
limit development in areas with endangered species

Answer(s): C

Explanation:

Although the passage does demonstrate the fragility of an endangered species (choice a) and the importance of effective wildlife management (choice b), the main goal is to argue that mixing species is the wrong way to attempt to preserve an endangered species. This is expressed clearly in the final paragraph: “We cannot and should not create genetically mixed species as a means of achieving a compromise between the needs of development and a species’ survival.” The passage does show that the mixing of species was successful (choice d), but the passage criticizes this point. The author is critical of land development in areas with specific endangered species, but this is not the focus of the passage, so choice e is incorrect.

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QUESTION: 12

The Florida panther, known for its distinctive characteristics, including a kinked tail and cowlicks, is nearing extinction with the help of scientists and government officials. Though once abundant in Florida, by the end of the twentieth century, only approximately 30 Florida panthers remained. Efforts to preserve the panthers had focused on shielding them from human encroachment with the hope that they could develop sustainable numbers to survive as a species. However, pressure from development caused officials to grow impatient and shift their strategy and goals.
In 1995, new breeds of female panthers were brought to Florida from Texas to bolster the population. The change has been dramatic. In 1990, 88% of the panthers in Florida had the distinct kinked tail. By 2000, five years after the introduction of the Texas panthers, not a single kitten born to the Texas females had a kinked tail. The breed known as the Florida panther is now on an expedited, ineluctable road to extinction — with the assistance of wildlife protection agencies.
If the goal was to have any kind of panther in Florida, it has been realized. Since the introduction of the Texas panthers, the panther population in Florida has risen to approximately 80 mixed-breed panthers. However, this “success” could portend a tragic trend in wildlife management in the United States. We cannot and should not create genetically mixed species as a means of achieving a compromise between the needs of development and a species’ survival. This type of species tampering is a perversion of the ideal of wildlife management and will irrevocably transform our national landscape.

The author supports the central idea of this passage primarily by

contrasting the Florida panther with the Texas panther
showing how interbreeding has destroyed the Florida panther species.
attacking government wildlife protection policies
showing how human encroachment has depleted Florida’s panther population
describing the history of panthers in the United States

Answer(s): B

Explanation:

The main idea of the passage is that efforts to preserve species through interbreeding will only backfire, pushing a particular endangered species farther down the road to extinction. The passage’s statistics show how the interbreeding has accomplished this in the case of the Florida panther. The Texas panther is not described, so choice a is incorrect. The author does not attack general wildlife protection policies — indeed, no policies are mentioned, only the specific handling of this panther population — so choice c is incorrect. Human encroachment was a main threat to the panthers (choice d), but the author did not discuss how encroachment harmed the species. Only a brief history of panthers in Florida is provided, so choice e is incorrect.

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QUESTION: 13

The Florida panther, known for its distinctive characteristics, including a kinked tail and cowlicks, is nearing extinction with the help of scientists and government officials. Though once abundant in Florida, by the end of the twentieth century, only approximately 30 Florida panthers remained. Efforts to preserve the panthers had focused on shielding them from human encroachment with the hope that they could develop sustainable numbers to survive as a species. However, pressure from development caused officials to grow impatient and shift their strategy and goals.
In 1995, new breeds of female panthers were brought to Florida from Texas to bolster the population. The change has been dramatic. In 1990, 88% of the panthers in Florida had the distinct kinked tail. By 2000, five years after the introduction of the Texas panthers, not a single kitten born to the Texas females had a kinked tail. The breed known as the Florida panther is now on an expedited, ineluctable road to extinction — with the assistance of wildlife protection agencies.
If the goal was to have any kind of panther in Florida, it has been realized. Since the introduction of the Texas panthers, the panther population in Florida has risen to approximately 80 mixed-breed panthers. However, this “success” could portend a tragic trend in wildlife management in the United States. We cannot and should not create genetically mixed species as a means of achieving a compromise between the needs of development and a species’ survival. This type of species tampering is a perversion of the ideal of wildlife management and will irrevocably transform our national landscape.

It can be inferred from the passage that

extinction is preferable to mixing species.
wildlife protection and development are completely incompatible.
wildlife protection agencies are in the pocket of development corporations.
scientist and government officials are equally disappointed with the results of the experiment.
there is alternatives to interbreeding, but they take longer.

Answer(s): E

Explanation:

The end of the first paragraph provides the clue to this answer. The Texas panther was introduced because “pressure from development caused officials to grow impatient and shift their strategies and goals.” This suggests that interbreeding was brought in as a quick fix so that the panther population could grow quickly and development in the area could be approved once the population was stabilized.
The author is clearly against interbreeding, but nothing indicates that the author would prefer extinction (choice a). The passage suggests that wildlife protection and development are often in con-flict, but does not suggest that they are incompatible (choice b). Development corporations pressured officials to act quickly, but the author does not state that wildlife protection agencies are in the pocket of development corporations (choice c). Nothing suggests how government officials feel about the results of the interbreeding, so choice d is also incorrect.

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QUESTION: 14

The Florida panther, known for its distinctive characteristics, including a kinked tail and cowlicks, is nearing extinction with the help of scientists and government officials. Though once abundant in Florida, by the end of the twentieth century, only approximately 30 Florida panthers remained. Efforts to preserve the panthers had focused on shielding them from human encroachment with the hope that they could develop sustainable numbers to survive as a species. However, pressure from development caused officials to grow impatient and shift their strategy and goals.
In 1995, new breeds of female panthers were brought to Florida from Texas to bolster the population. The change has been dramatic. In 1990, 88% of the panthers in Florida had the distinct kinked tail. By 2000, five years after the introduction of the Texas panthers, not a single kitten born to the Texas females had a kinked tail. The breed known as the Florida panther is now on an expedited, ineluctable road to extinction — with the assistance of wildlife protection agencies.
If the goal was to have any kind of panther in Florida, it has been realized. Since the introduction of the Texas panthers, the panther population in Florida has risen to approximately 80 mixed-breed panthers. However, this “success” could portend a tragic trend in wildlife management in the United States. We cannot and should not create genetically mixed species as a means of achieving a compromise between the needs of development and a species’ survival. This type of species tampering is a perversion of the ideal of wildlife management and will irrevocably transform our national landscape.

The author suggests that blame for the extinction of Florida panthers rests chiefly upon

government officials who bowed to pressure from developers
developers who encroached upon protected areas.
scientists who suggested interbreeding as a solution
advocates of species preservation.
wildlife agencies that did not act sooner to protect the panther population

Answer(s): A

Explanation:

Several sentences point the blame at government officials. The first sentence states that the panther “is nearing extinction with the help of scientists and government officials.” The last sentence in the first paragraph reveals that officials opted for interbreeding because “pressure from development caused [them] to grow impatient.” Finally, the third paragraph tells us that the interbreeding was “a compromise between the needs of development and a species’ survival.” Thus, the blame rests on officials who bowed to pressure from developers. The author does not state that developers are encroaching upon protected areas (choice b), and although fingers are pointed at scientists in the first sentence, nothing indicates that scientists suggested the solution (choice c). Choices d and e are incorrect because the passage does not mention advocates of species preservation or suggests that agencies did not act quickly enough. Rather, the problem is that agencies wanted to act too quickly.

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QUESTION: 15

The Florida panther, known for its distinctive characteristics, including a kinked tail and cowlicks, is nearing extinction with the help of scientists and government officials. Though once abundant in Florida, by the end of the twentieth century, only approximately 30 Florida panthers remained. Efforts to preserve the panthers had focused on shielding them from human encroachment with the hope that they could develop sustainable numbers to survive as a species. However, pressure from development caused officials to grow impatient and shift their strategy and goals.
In 1995, new breeds of female panthers were brought to Florida from Texas to bolster the population. The change has been dramatic. In 1990, 88% of the panthers in Florida had the distinct kinked tail. By 2000, five years after the introduction of the Texas panthers, not a single kitten born to the Texas females had a kinked tail. The breed known as the Florida panther is now on an expedited, ineluctable road to extinction — with the assistance of wildlife protection agencies.

If the goal was to have any kind of panther in Florida, it has been realized. Since the introduction of the Texas panthers, the panther population in Florida has risen to approximately 80 mixed-breed panthers. However, this “success” could portend a tragic trend in wildlife management in the United States. We cannot and should not create genetically mixed species as a means of achieving a compromise between the needs of development and a species’ survival. This type of species tampering is a perversion of the ideal of wildlife management and will irrevocably transform our national landscape.

The passage suggests that the author

is a former member of the Wildlife Protection Agency.
is willing to compromise if it means the survival of a species.
is afraid that species tampering will become the norm in wildlife preservation management.
believes the government has encouraged species tampering as a means of conducting genetic experiments
believes that “sustainable numbers” statistics are not realistic and lead to the expedited extinction of species.

Answer(s): C

Explanation:

The last paragraph expresses the author’s fear that the “success” in Florida “could portend a tragic trend in wildlife management” and that “species tampering . . . will irrevocably transform our national landscape.” Thus, he fears that this approach will become a standard in wildlife preservation. Nothing suggests that he is a former member of any agency, so choice a is incorrect. The author clearly does not want to compromise a species’ integrity, so choice b is incorrect. The author does not state that he believes in a conspiracy of genetic experiments, so choice d is incorrect. Finally, the realism of sustainable numbers” statistics is not discussed, so choice e is incorrect.

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GMAT GMAT SECTION 3: VERBAL ABILITY Exam (page: 3) GMAT Section 3: Verbal Ability Updated on: 09-Feb-2026

QUESTION: 11

Explanation:

QUESTION: 12

Explanation:

QUESTION: 13

Explanation:

QUESTION: 14

Explanation:

QUESTION: 15

Explanation:

GMAT GMAT SECTION 3: VERBAL ABILITY Exam (page: 3)
GMAT Section 3: Verbal Ability
Updated on: 09-Feb-2026