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Northern elephant seals had been reduced to about 20 individuals in the 1800s. Biologists studied variation in proteins in the species. They found no genetic differences in the protein among different individuals.This lack of variation is due to:
The fact that elephant seals live in a constant environment where there is no need for genetic variation.
Population bottleneck and genetic drift.
Natural selection resulting in a single best genotype.
A very low rate of mutation.
Answers (1)
The lack of genetic differences in the protein among different individuals of the northern elephant seal population can be attributed to both population bottleneck and genetic drift.
A population bottleneck occurs when a population undergoes a drastic reduction in size, often leading to a significant loss of genetic variation. In the case of northern elephant seals, their population was reduced to about 20 individuals in the 1800s, which is a severe bottleneck event. During this bottleneck, the genetic diversity of the population can be greatly reduced due to the limited number of individuals that contribute to the next generation. As a result, there is a higher likelihood of losing genetic variation, including variation in proteins.
Genetic drift refers to the random fluctuation of allele frequencies in a population due to chance events. In small populations, such as the northern elephant seals with only 20 individuals, genetic drift can have a pronounced effect. When genetic drift occurs, certain alleles may become more or less common in the population purely due to random sampling of individuals for reproduction. Over time, this random sampling can lead to the fixation of certain alleles and the loss of others, resulting in reduced genetic variation.
In the case of the northern elephant seals, the combination of a severe population bottleneck and subsequent genetic drift likely contributed to the observed lack of genetic differences in the protein among different individuals. The small founding population size and the random fluctuations in allele frequencies due to genetic drift would have resulted in limited genetic variation in the population.
Hence,the correct answer is option 4.
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