Ancestral Puebloans, the civilization from which present-day Pueblo tribes descended, emerged as early as 1500 B.C.E. in an area of what is now the southwestern United States and dispersed suddenly in the late 1200sC.E. , abandoning established villages with systems for farming crops and turkeys. Recent analysis comparing turkey remains at Mesa Verde, one such village in southern Colorado, to samples from modern turkey populations in the Rio Grande Valley of north central New Mexico determined that the latter birds descended in part from turkeys cultivated at Mesa Verde with shared genetic markers appearing only after 1280. Thus, researchers concluded that __ 13 Mark for Review Which choice most logically completes the text? A conditions of the terrains in the Rio Grande Valley and Mesa Verde had greater similarities in the past than they do today. B some Ancestral Puebloans migrated to the Rio Grande Valley in the late 1200s and carried farming practices with them. C Indigenous peoples living in the Rio Grande Valley primarily planted crops and did not cultivate turkeys before 1280. D the Ancestral Puebloans of Mesa Verde likely adopted the farming practices of Indigenous peoples living in other regions.

## Step 1<br />The problem presents a scenario where the Ancestral Puebloans, a civilization that existed in the southwestern United States, suddenly dispersed in the late 1200s C.E., leaving behind established villages with systems for farming crops and turkeys. The text then presents a finding from recent analysis comparing turkey remains at Mesa Verde, one such village, to samples from modern turkey populations in the Rio Grande Valley of north central New Mexico. The analysis determined that the latter birds descended in part from turkeys cultivated at Mesa Verde, with shared genetic markers appearing only after 1280.<br /><br />## Step 2<br />The question asks us to logically complete the text based on the given information. We need to consider the implications of the shared genetic markers and the timing of their appearance.<br /><br />## Step 3<br />Option A suggests that the conditions of the terrains in the Rio Grande Valley and Mesa Verde were more similar in the past than they are today. However, the text does not provide any evidence to support this claim.<br /><br />## Step 4<br />Option B suggests that some Ancestral Puebloans migrated to the Rio Grande Valley in the late 1200s and carried farming practices with them. This option aligns with the text's information about the sudden dispersion of the Ancestral Puebloans and the shared genetic markers appearing after 1280.<br /><br />## Step 5<br />Option C suggests that Indigenous peoples living in the Rio Grande Valley primarily planted crops and did not cultivate turkeys before 1280. This option contradicts the text's information about the shared genetic markers appearing after 1280.<br /><br />## Step 6<br />Option D suggests that the Ancestral Puebloans of Mesa Verde likely farming practices of Indigenous peoples living in other regions. This option does not align with the text's information about the shared genetic markers appearing after 1280.