Final answer:
The founder effect is a special case of genetic drift in evolution that occurs when a small group of individuals migrates and establishes a new population. This can result in a shift in allele frequencies and a higher prevalence of certain genetic disorders in the new population.
Step-by-step explanation:
The founder effect is a special case of genetic drift in evolution. It occurs when a small group of individuals from a population migrates and establishes a new population in a different area. These founding individuals may carry a different set of alleles compared to the original population, resulting in a shift in allele frequencies in the new population.
An example of the founder effect is the Amish population, which was established by a small group of German immigrants who carried gene mutations causing inherited disorders. Due to the limited gene pool, certain disorders are more prevalent in the Amish community.
Another example is the Afrikaner population in South Africa, where a high proportion of founding colonists carried specific mutations, causing a higher incidence of certain genetic disorders in this population.