Question

The Florida panthers population decreased to only 20 individuals at one point in time. As the population rebounds, the genetic diversity is greatly reduced. This is an example of what mechanism of evolution?
A.) founder effect

B.) genetic drift

C.) bottleneck effect

D.) gene flow

Answer 1

Answer: c) bottleneck effect

Explanation: The significant reduction in genetic variation due to a major decrease in population's size for at least one generation is called a bottleneck effect. Although the population can recover, the low genetic variation will still pose a significant risk for the long term survival of the species.