16. Parasitism is one of the most successful and widespread lifestyles on Earth. Which of the following characteristics best explains why parasitism has been so successful across many different lineages of organisms?
(A) Parasites typically predigest their hosts' tissues, reducing the need for complex digestive or structural adaptations.
(B) Unlike traditional predators, parasites often exploit almost all tissues of their host simultaneously to maximize energy gain.
(C) Parasites generally do not kill their hosts immediately, allowing them to use a single host as a long-term resource while avoiding direct competition with decomposers.
(D) Parasites usually kill their hosts quickly but require very little biomass to sustain themselves due to their small size.
(E) Parasites often have complex life cycles involving multiple hosts, enabling them to occupy diverse ecological niches and improve their chances of dispersal.