Which of the following variations might provide a survival advantage? (You may select more than one)
A.
White fur
B.
Sharp eyesight
C.
A great sense of smell
D.
A longer tail
A, B, and C
A random genetic mutation results in white fur. What would you expect this population to look like after several hundred years
A.
Mostly wolves with normal fur
B.
Mostly wolves with white fur
C.
An equal combination of the two
D.
The wolves would go extinct
B. Mostly wolves with white fur. Over time, the white fur allele would spread throughout the population through natural selection if it provided a survival advantage in their environment.
Fill in the blanks.
In a pine forest, a population of grey ______ live among the trees and hop from tree trunk to tree trunk. A random _______ results in a brown fur color which closely matches the brown tree trunks. After several hundred years the fur color becomes the most ______ because it provides the ______ of camouflage and it is difficult for ________ to see them.
In a pine forest, a population of grey squirrels live among the trees and hop from tree trunk to tree trunk. A random mutation results in a brown fur color which closely matches the brown tree trunks. After several hundred years, the fur color becomes the most common because it provides the advantage of camouflage and it is difficult for predators to see them.
A bottleneck event can be caused by (mark all that apply)
A.
Environmental disasters
B.
Disease epidemics
C.
Habitat destruction
D.
Over exploitation (including things like hunting and fishing)
A, B, C, and D.
All of 'em?
Yes, all of them: environmental disasters, disease epidemics, habitat destruction, and overexploitation can lead to a bottleneck event.
A small population of deer live on an island. A natural disaster kills a large portion of their population.
Why is this a challenge to this population?
A.
Because now there is not enough food for all the deer
B.
Because now the gene pool is reduced and even disadvantageous traits will be passed to offspring
C.
Because it is very sad for the deer population
D.
Because now the deer population will be threatened due to low genetic variation