Question

The curve on the left shows the height of a population of penguins. The curve on the right shows the population five years later. What has happened to this population

Answer 1

Answer:

Stabilizing selection

Explanation:

Stabilizing selection refers to the process of natural selection that decreases genetic diversity. It tends to stabilize the intermediate trait and do not support the extreme phenotypes. In the given graph, the number of penguins having intermediate height has increased in total population. Since intermediate height is favored over other values, it represents stabilizing selection.

Answer 2

Answer;

Stabilizing selection is the most appropriate

Explanation;

• Stabilizing selection is an example of natural selection or among the ways in which natural selection can have an effect in the variation of a population.
• Stabilizing selection would result to a decline in the genetic variance of a given population when natural selection tends to favor a certain phenotype against other variations that are extreme.
• For instance in the case of penguins,natural selection may favor those individuals that adapt well in the ocean and are less likely to be noted by predators. These are those penguins with distinct black and white coloring that blend in with the darkness of the ocean, thus they will survive and reproduce and pass these trait to their offspring. On the other hand those penguins without these characteristics may die as a result of predation by their enemies.