A Tiny, Tawny Colored Butterfly Called the Carson Wandering Skipper

A tiny, tawny colored butterfly called the Carson Wandering Skipper was always known for its small and very localized populations. Typically, it was found along the western Nevada and eastern California high desert areas. It was always located close to hot springs and other wet areas that supported salt grass, the host plant it depended on.Recently, the populations went into a steep decline, and a last hold-out area was threatened by imminent construction of a freeway bypass. Biologists became alarmed and began an intensive search for populations in locations other than the spot designated for the freeway bypass. They began their search by identifying all known locations of hot springs, in hopes of finding small populations of the Carson Wandering Skipper close by.
-As they searched for previously unknown populations of the Carson Wandering Skipper, biologists wondered if hot springs were absolutely essential to its survival. This phase of the investigation is

A) finding out what is known and asking a question
B) analyzing data and asking a question
C) Asking a question and testing predictions
D) accepting their hypothesis and analyzing data
E) accepting their hypothesis and asking a question