Question

Which of the following events would have the highest selection differential (S)?

1) A population of baobab trees where the parental generation has a mean trunk width (DBH) of 660 cm and the members who reproduce have a mean width of 753 cm
2) A population of Greenland sharks where the parental generation has a mean body length of 370 cm and the members who reproduce have a mean body length of 480 cm
3) A population of elephants where the parental generation has a mean shoulder height of 320 cm and the members who reproduce have a mean shoulder height of 290 cm
4) Selection differential is the same for all three cases
5) It's impossible to tell from the information given

Answer 1

The event with the highest selection differential is a population of Greenland sharks where the parental generation has a mean body length of 2) 370 cm and the reproducing members have a mean body length of 480 cm.

Step-by-step explanation:

The event that would have the highest selection differential (S) is 2) A population of Greenland sharks where the parental generation has a mean body length of 370 cm and the members who reproduce have a mean body length of 480 cm. Selection differential measures the difference between the mean of the parental generation and the mean of the reproducing members of the population. In this case, the difference in body length between the parental generation and the reproducing population is the highest, indicating a high selection differential.