Final answer:
A cross between a red-eyed male fruit fly and a white-eyed female fruit fly will likely yield 50% red-eyed and 50% white-eyed offspring, following the patterns of sex-linked inheritance.
Step-by-step explanation:
When crossing a red-eyed male fruit fly (XY) with a white-eyed female (XwXw), the resulting offspring will follow the patterns of sex-linked inheritance of the eye color trait in fruit flies.
The eye color gene is located on the X chromosome and red eye color (X) is dominant over white eye (Xw). Here's how the genetics works out:
The male fruit fly has one X chromosome with the red-eye allele (X) and one Y chromosome (Y), so he can only pass on these chromosomes onto his offspring.
The female fruit fly has two X chromosomes with the white-eye allele (XwXw) and can pass on either Xw chromosome. As a result, the expected offspring would be:
- 50% male offspring with the genotype XwY, which are white-eyed.
- 50% female offspring with the genotype XXw, which are red-eyed because they have one red-eye allele (dominant).
Therefore, the likely proportion of white-eyed to red-eyed flies would be 50% red-eyed, 50% white-eyed (option b).