**Understanding Barnacle Niches in the Intertidal Zone**In the rocky intertidal zone, two barnacle species are found: one lower in the wet zone and the other higher in the dry zone. For simplicity, let's call these species WET and DRY. Consider the following statement to gain insight into their ecological niches:**Which of the following statements is true?**- The fundamental and realized niche of DRY are identical.- The fundamental niche of WET is smaller than its realized niche.- **The fundamental niche of DRY includes the wet zone (where it doesn't occur in nature).** (This is the correct statement, indicated by the filled circle.)- The fundamental niche of WET includes the dry zone (where it doesn't occur in nature).**Explanation:**- **Fundamental niche**: The potential living spaces a species could occupy without competition.- **Realized niche**: The actual space a species occupies, restricted by competition and other factors. Understanding these concepts helps explain species distribution and environmental adaptations.

The ecological niche of a species is the role it plays in its environment. It includes all of the resources that the species needs to survive and reproduce, as well as the interactions that it has with other species.There are two types of niches: the fundamental niche and the realized niche. The fundamental niche is the entire range of environmental conditions that a species can tolerate. The realized niche is the range of environmental conditions that the species actually uses, after taking into account interactions with other species.The correct statement is: The fundamental niche of WET includes the dry zone (where it doesn't occur in nature).Explanation:The fundamental and realized niche of DRY are identical.This statement may not necessarily be true. The fundamental niche represents the full range of environmental conditions under which a species can survive and reproduce, while the realized niche is the actual range where the species exists in nature, considering interactions with other species. In some cases, a species may not fully occupy its fundamental niche due to competition, predation, or other factors.The fundamental niche of WET is smaller than its realized niche.This statement is unlikely to be true. The fundamental niche is typically larger than the realized niche because the realized niche takes into account the constraints imposed by interactions with other species.The fundamental niche of DRY includes the wet zone (where it doesn't occur in nature).This statement is unlikely to be true. The fundamental niche represents where a species could potentially live, and if the DRY barnacle is adapted to the dry zone, its fundamental niche would not include the wet zone.The fundamental niche of WET includes the dry zone (where it doesn't occur in nature).This is the most likely correct statement. The fundamental niche of WET barnacles would encompass the full range of environmental conditions where they could potentially survive and reproduce, including the dry zone. However, in reality, the WET barnacles may only be found in the wet zone, representing their realized niche.To summarize, the correct answer is: The fundamental niche of WET includes the dry zone (where it doesn't occur in nature).