Predict what would happen if, after 22 months, guppies from the transplanted population were returned to the source pool. Describe an experiment to test your prediction.

Short Answer

Expert verified

The higher predation pressure will act on the bright-colored guppies; they will lose their instincts and evolve to blend with their original source population.

The occurrence of natural selection will cause more color and size changes in the descendants of guppies than their ancestors.

Step by step solution

01

Predation

The form of biological interactions among living organisms that helps control the population in which food is obtained when one species eats another is called predation.

The several advantages associated with predation are controlling the prey population and killing fewer fit species like old and sick species. Predation acts as a link in trophic levels for energy transfer.

The carnivorous interaction is considered a predation example.

02

Habitat

The field of ecology describes habitat as a natural environment where living organisms like plants and animals build their home so that they can live in their shelter to protect themselves from predators. Examples of habitats include forest, desert, grassland, and stream.

The various beneficial things provided by habitats to their residing species are water, reproduction space, food, light, and shelter.

03

Testing prediction in an experiment

After 15 generations or 22 months, when guppies return to their pool source, the bright-colored species will face a high predation rate due to the plenty of predators in that source.

When guppies are transferred to their source, they start developing their instincts to cope and survive in that environment with the selection pressure.

When the environment of guppies changes due to the adult guppies transplantation into another pool, the produced descendant of the transplanted species will be bright-colored guppies (guppies possess agene that is responsible for bright color).

The descendant guppies will bear different traits than their ancestor (drab-colored adult fish). After 15 generations, natural selection will occur, and this evolutionary process will result in color change and size increment in guppies.

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Most popular questions from this chapter

DNA sequences in many human genes are very similar to the sequences of corresponding genes in chimpanzees. The most likely explanation for this result is that

(A) humans and chimpanzees share a relatively recent common ancestor.

(B) humans evolved from chimpanzees.

(C) chimpanzees evolved from humans.

(D) convergent evolution led to the DNA similarities.

WHAT IF? Fossils show that dinosaurs originated 200–250 million years ago. Would you expect the geographic distribution of early dinosaur fossils to be broad (on many continents) or narrow (on one or a few continents only)? Explain.

How does evolution account for (a) the similar mammalian forelimbs with different functions shown in Figure 22.15 and (b) the similar forms of the two distantly related mammals shown in Figure 22.18?


The upper forelimbs of humans and bats have fairly similar skeletal structures, whereas the corresponding bones in whales have very different shapes and proportions. However, genetic data suggest that all three kinds of organisms diverged from a common ancestor at about the same time. Which of the following is the most likely explanation for these data?

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(B) Natural selection in an aquatic environment resulted in significant changes to whale forelimb anatomy.

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(D) Whales are not properly classified as mammals.

Explain why anatomical and molecular features often fit a similar nested pattern. In addition, describe a process that can cause this not to be the case.

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