Salt is notoriously dangerous to land snails; however, some populations of aquatic, freshwater snail have brackish (or a mix of salt and fresh water) water adaptations and live in different parts of a river system. A group of scientists monitored salt concentrations in the habitats of two freshwater snail populations located nearby and recorded the salt level as follows (in ppt, parts per thousand):
Population 1 (Day 1): 0.1 ppt (morning), 0.0 ppt (afternoon), 0.1 ppt (evening)
Population 2 (Day 1): 0.3 ppt (morning), 0.5 ppt (afternoon), 0.2 ppt (evening)
In 3-5 sentences, 1) describe in which population you'd expect to see more adaptations for salt water and 2) explain how such adaptations would become more common in this population.
1) Based on the salt concentrations recorded, you would expect to see more adaptations for salt water in Population 2. This is because Population 2 has higher salt concentrations compared to Population 1 throughout the day.
2) Such adaptations would become more common in Population 2 through natural selection. Snails with traits that allow them to tolerate or thrive in higher salt concentrations would have a higher chance of survival and reproduction in Population 2. Over time, these traits would become more prevalent in the population as individuals with these adaptations have a better chance of passing on their genes.
Based on the salt concentrations recorded, Population 2 would be the population in which you would expect to see more adaptations for salt water. This is because Population 2 experiences higher and more variable salt levels throughout the day compared to Population 1. In response to these conditions, snails in Population 2 that have adaptations allowing them to tolerate and survive in brackish water are more likely to thrive and reproduce successfully. Over time, these adaptations would become more common in the population as individuals with these traits have higher chances of passing them on to the next generation.
1) Based on the salt concentrations recorded, you would expect to see more adaptations for salt water in Population 2. This population had higher salt concentrations throughout the day compared to Population 1.
2) Adaptations for salt water would become more common in Population 2 because individuals with traits that allow them to tolerate higher salt concentrations would have a better chance of survival and reproduction in their environment. Over time, these individuals would pass on their salt tolerance genes to their offspring, increasing the frequency of the adaptation in the population. This natural selection process would gradually lead to a higher proportion of individuals in Population 2 having adaptations for brackish water.