Final answer:
The scenario illustrates the effect of forced migration caused by an earthquake, leading to short-term environmental change where people must relocate. This change can also result in habitat isolation and significant genetic shifts within the affected population.
Step-by-step explanation:
During an earthquake, buildings and roads collapse, leading people to move to new locations and find new homes. This scenario presents the effect of forced migration as a result of short-term environmental change. Forced migration occurs when populations or individuals must leave their current habitat due to sudden and significant changes in their environment, such as those resulting from natural disasters.
Natural events like earthquakes can cause the phenomena known as the bottleneck effect, where a large portion of a population is wiped out randomly. The survivors' genetic structure then becomes representative of the whole population's genetic makeup, which can lead to changes in biodiversity and eventual habitat isolation. This habitat isolation can hinder reproduction with parent species, leading to the independent evolution of the new population.