Question

In 1983, a population of dark-eyed junco birds was established on the campus of the University of California, San Diego (UCSD), which is located many miles from the juncos’ normal habitat in the mixed-coniferous temperate forests in the mountains. Juncos have white outer tail feathers that the males display during aggressive interactions and courtship displays. Males with more white in their tail are more likely to win aggressive interactions, and females prefer to mate with males with more white in their tails. Females have less white in their tails than do males, and they display it less often. The UCSD campus male junco population tails are about 36% white, whereas the tails of males from nearby mountain populations are about 40% to 45% white. The founding stock of UCSD birds was likely from the nearby mountain populations because some of those birds overwinter on the UCSD campus each year. Population sizes on the UCSD campus have been reasonably large, and there are significant habitat differences between the UCSD campus and the mountain coniferous forests; the UCSD campus has a more open environment (making birds more visible) and a lower junco density (decreasing intraspecific competition) than that in the mountain forests. Given this information, which of the following evolutionary mechanisms do you think is most likely responsible for the difference between the UCSD and mountain populations?

Answer 1

n 1983 a population of dark-eyed junco birds became established on the campus of the University of California, San Diego (UCSD), which is located many miles from the junco's normal habitat in the mixed-coniferous temperate forests in the mountains.

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