Matt Buys a Male Python from a Snake Dealer Who

question 26

Multiple Choice

Matt buys a male python from a snake dealer who tells him that the snake carries the albino allele. Matt mates the snake with an albino female, and four normally pigmented offspring are produced. Matt rushes back to the snake dealer and demands his money back stating that the male he bought is not heterozygous for the albino allele because all of its offspring had normal pigmentation. Is Matt justified in his accusation?

• A) Yes, because according to the laws of probability, at least one of the offspring should have been albino.
• B) Yes, because 50% of all offspring produced must be albino.
• C) No, because for each offspring, there is a 50% chance that it will have normal pigmentation.
• D) No, because a heterozygous male will only pass the dominant allele to its offspring.
• E) Yes, because if at least one parent is homozygous recessive, at least one of their offspring must also show the recessive trait.

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