Question

A population of squirrels is preyed on by small hawks at maturity. the smaller adult squirrels can escape into burrows. the larger adult squirrels can fight off the hawks. after several generations, the squirrels in the area tend to be very small or very large. this is an example of __________.

Answer 1

A population of squirrels is preyed on by small hawks at maturity. the smaller adult squirrels can escape into burrows. the larger adult squirrels can fight off the hawks. after several generations, the squirrels in the area tend to be very small or very large. this is an example of disruptive selection. In disruptive selection, the extreme traits i.e., very small and very large sizes are favoured over intermediate trait i.e., average size.