Notice the population of beetles. The allele for color is seen on their backs: green (g) and brown (G) alleles. Green beetles are homozygous, gg. Brown beetles are heterozygous Gg in this population sample. The beetles' habitat is an old growth forest, where they burrow into the trees' bark for food and shelter. The coloration of the beetles help them to hide from predators, such as birds.

Question

Notice the population of beetles. The allele for color is seen on their backs: green (g) and brown (G) alleles. Green beetles are homozygous, gg. Brown beetles are heterozygous Gg in this population sample. The beetles' habitat is an old growth forest, where they burrow into the trees' bark for food and shelter. The coloration of the beetles help them to hide from predators, such as birds.

Imagine this scenario. During the spring and summer the old growth forest has been plagued with wildfires. The ground litter as well as the leaves on the trees have been burned. Only very young trees are destroyed in the fire though; the old growth trees still stand. How would this impact the beetle population, if at all?

(1 point)
Responses

Since the leaf litter and small trees burned, we would expect a decline in the brown beetle population.
Since the leaf litter and small trees burned, we would expect a decline in the brown beetle population.

The wildfires destroyed all food sources for the beetles; we would expect to see a decline in both green and brown beetles.
The wildfires destroyed all food sources for the beetles; we would expect to see a decline in both green and brown beetles.

Due to the wildfires, the entire beetle population would decline because they would not longer be camouflaged from predators.
Due to the wildfires, the entire beetle population would decline because they would not longer be camouflaged from predators.

The leaves will be destroyed and the green beetle population would decline because they would no longer be camouflaged from predators.
The leaves will be destroyed and the green beetle population would decline because they would no longer be camouflaged from predators.
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Answer 1

Since the old growth trees are still standing, the beetles would still have a habitat to burrow into for shelter. However, with the leaf litter and small trees burned, the green beetles may have a harder time blending in with their surroundings, potentially making them more vulnerable to predators. The brown beetles, being heterozygous, may have an advantage in this situation as their coloration allows them to blend in more effectively with the remaining bark on the old growth trees. Therefore, we may expect to see a decline in the green beetle population while the brown beetle population may remain relatively stable.