Why could local experience be more useful than written maps for pastoralists?

Correct answer: Because changing conditions of pasture water and season were understood through experience

The direct answer is A: local experience helped pastoralists understand changing pasture, water and seasonal conditions. Written maps may show a route, but they cannot always show whether grass is currently available, whether a water source has dried, or whether weather has changed. Step by step, pastoralists observed land and weather; they remembered reliable grazing and water places; they adjusted their route according to present conditions. Option A is correct because it describes this practical experiential knowledge. Option B is absurd and unrelated: maps were not always found in the sea. Option C is wrong because pastoralists did need routes to move herds safely. Option D is the opposite of the truth, since experience was extremely valuable. The exam cue is: pastoral knowledge is lived, local and seasonal, not merely written on paper.