Q28 · Practice questionSimple familiar1 mark
QUESTION 28
A storm kills most beetles on an island, regardless of their colour. The survivors have a different colour-allele frequency from the original population. The most direct explanation is
(A)
Directional selection for the survivors’ colour.
(B)
Mutation caused every surviving beetle to change colour.
(C)
Gene flow from the mainland.
(D)
Genetic drift through a bottleneck.
WORKED SOLUTION
1 markAnswer D
Answer
D
Working
A mortality event unrelated to the trait leaves a chance sample of alleles. The small surviving population can therefore have altered allele frequencies through genetic drift.
Marking criteria
- Select D. [1 mark]
Practice question aligned to the current QCAA syllabus; review the worked solution and marking criteria.
View the QCAA syllabus