The student wants to describe the study's research methodology. Which… | Verbal SAT Question

While researching a topic, a student has taken the following notes:

In a 2004 study, researchers Jorge E. López and C. Vaughan wanted to explore the effects of ingestion by bats on the germination of Piper sancti-felicis seeds in Costa Rica.
The team of researchers tested 125 Piper sancti-felicis seeds that had been ingested by chestnut short-tailed bats.
Of these, 82 seeds (66%) germinated.
As a control, J.E. López and C. Vaughan tested 125 Piper sancti-felicis seeds that had not been ingested by chestnut short-tailed bats.
Of these, 88 seeds (70%) germinated.

The student wants to describe the study’s research methodology. Which choice most effectively uses relevant information from the notes to accomplish this goal?

The team of researchers tested the germination of 125 Piper sancti-felicis seeds that had been ingested by chestnut short-tailed bats and 125 Piper sancti-felicis seeds that had not been ingested.

J.E. López and C. Vaughan wanted to explore the effects of chestnut short-tailed bats’ ingestion on Piper sancti-felicis seed germination.

In the study, a lower percentage of Piper sancti-felicis seeds ingested by bats germinated than those that had not been ingested by bats.

Research by J.E. López and C. Vaughan revealed that 82 of 125—that is, 66%—of the Piper sancti-felicis seeds that had been ingested by the bats germinated.