Question

A species of wildflower grows on hillsides in two locations. In the first (location A), the population is large and diverse, covering a large section of hillside. In the second (location B), a small but diverse population grows at the base of a hillside. Severe storms cause extensive mudslides in both areas, killing a large proportion of individuals in both populations. If you were to survey both locations after the surviving flowers have survived and reproduced for several generations, which pattern would you expect to observe?

a. Both populations would be large and diverse, retaining all of their original alleles in their original frequencies.
b. Both populations would be very small and genetically uniform, having lost many of their original alleles.
c. The population in location A would be large and diverse, retaining all of its alleles in their original frequencies. The population in location B would have reduced genetic diver.

Answer 1

The correct answer is E.

Step-by-step explanation:

The options are incomplete, here are the complete options:

A) Both populations would be large and diverse, retaining all of their original alleles in their original frequencies.

B) Both populations would be very small and genetically uniform, having lost many of their original alleles.

C) The population in location A would be large and diverse, retaining all of its alleles in their original frequencies. The population in location B would have reduced genetic diversity and different allele frequencies than it did originally.

D) The population in location A would be large but would show a reduction in genetic diversity and altered allele frequencies. The population in location B, however, would retain its original genetic diversity and allele frequencies.

E) The population in location A would be large, while the population in location B would be small, but both would be equally diverse genetically and have the same allele frequencies as one another.

The answer is E because upon examining the example given in the question, we can say that after reproducing several generations, the flowers in both locations are going to go back to their original numbers and the location A population will be large, location B population will be small but they will not be any different genetically than they were before. They will retain their allele frequencies and differences.

I hope this answer helps.