Use the Following Information When Answering the Corresponding Questions)

question 11

Multiple Choice

Use the following information when answering the corresponding questions) .
In 1983, a population of dark- eyed junco birds became established on the campus of the University of California, San Diego UCSD) , which is located many miles from the junco's normal habitat in the mixed- coniferous temperate forests in the mountains. Juncos have white outer tail feathers that the males display during aggressive interactions and during courtship displays. Males with more white in their tail are more likely to win aggressive interactions, and females prefer to mate with males with more white in their tails. Females have less white in their tails than males, and display it less often. Pamela J. Yeh. 2004. Rapid evolution of a sexually selected trait following population establishment in a novel habitat. Evolution 58[1]:166- 74.)
-The UCSD campus male junco population tails are about 36% white, whereas the tails of males from nearby mountain populations are about 40- 45% white. The founding stock of UCSD birds was likely from the nearby mountain populations because some of those birds overwinter on the UCSD campus each year. Population sizes on the UCSD campus have been reasonably large, and there are significant habitat differences between the UCSD campus and the mountain coniferous forests; UCSD campus has a more open environment making birds more visible) and a lower junco density decreasing intraspecific competition) than that in the mountain forests. Given this information, which of the following evolutionary mechanisms do you think is most likely responsible for the difference between the UCSD and mountain populations?

• A) gene flow
• B) inbreeding
• C) natural selection
• D) mutation
• E) genetic drift

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Definitions:

Temporal Lobes

Regions of the brain located beneath the temples, responsible for processing auditory information and involved in memory and emotion.

Short-term Memories

Memory stored for a brief period of time, usually for about 20 to 30 seconds, that holds a small amount of information before it is forgotten or transferred to long-term memory.

Retroactive Interference

The phenomenon where newly learned information interferes with the recall of information learned previously.

Newer Information

Recently acquired data or knowledge that updates or supersedes previous understanding.