Question

A male cardinal's red color is an example of a trait affected by natural selection. The females of the species choose mates

Answer 1

Answer:

In the cardinals, if the females start using a different criterion than the color of the feather when they choose couple, most likely to happen is that decreased variation in the shades of red because no form of the trait is advantageous.

Explanation:

Options for this question are:

• Increased variation in the shades of red because the selection pressure has been relieved.
• Increased variation in the shades of red because the cardinals try different ways to impress the females.
• Decreased variation in the shades of red because no form of the trait is advantageous.
• Decreased variation in the shades of red because the only reason for variation was selection pressure.

In the context of natural selection, male cardinals court females using the coloring of their feathers as a form of sexual selection. This means that the shades of red in the feathers are a selection criterion in these birds, and the more visible shades represent an advantage.

But, if the selection criterion was not the color of the feathers, this trait would no longer represent an advantage in the competition between the males to be chosen as a mate. Instead, the trait that would determine sexual selection would be the one that experiences an increase in its variation.