RC Guillemots are birds of Arctic Regions.

[RonPurewal]

the G's would prefer not to inhabit a previously uninhabited area that now also contains their predators

^^ that answer choice specifically says we're talking about current predators of the guillemot. in other words, these are predators that already live in the same areas where the guillemots live.
therefore, "i don't think the guillemots will survive if the predators are there" is a non-objection.

also... "prefer"
i hope you didn't mean this literally. birds are marvelous creatures, but they are not capable of making carefully thought out, premeditated decisions about where to live.

[SydneyT842]

also... "prefer"
i hope you didn't mean this literally. birds are marvelous creatures, but they are not capable of making carefully thought out, premeditated decisions about where to live.

Assuming everything else constant, if the G's have been living in an area for some time and have not yet travelled northward, why would they travel to the north. I would think that they would "prefer" to stay in the same area since they have not ventured to the new unfamiliar area that also has the same threats (predators) as their current habitat. There would have to be some other force that causes them to have to move, which in this case would be the lack of or reduction of their food source.

The statement mentions that they "feed on fish that gather beneath thin sheets of floating ice." I took the statement as simply describing a characteristic of the fish. However, if the thin sheets melt and it affects their ability to feed, it seems the statement's purpose was more to describe a significant method of how the G's catch the fish. How do you determine when you can make these implications?

[RonPurewal]

Assuming everything else constant, if the G's have been living in an area for some time and have not yet travelled northward, why would they travel to the north. I would think that they would "prefer" to stay in the same area since they have not ventured to the new unfamiliar area that also has the same threats (predators) as their current habitat. There would have to be some other force that causes them to have to move, which in this case would be the lack of or reduction of their food source.

the entire problem is about what will happen if global warming continues.
...so, there's your "other force" (= global warming).

[RonPurewal]

The statement mentions that they "feed on fish that gather beneath thin sheets of floating ice." I took the statement as simply describing a characteristic of the fish. However, if the thin sheets melt and it affects their ability to feed, it seems the statement's purpose was more to describe a significant method of how the G's catch the fish. How do you determine when you can make these implications?

i mean, you basically just have to use common sense here. this is the ONLY thing you're told about the fish.

if you're told EXACTLY ONE THING about some animal that's involved in the situation, then, do you think that thing is ...
...an important characteristic?
...a completely random observation that has nothing to do with anything?