1st Semester Final - Short Answer

Question 1

Three types of reproductive isolation

Answer 1

Behavioral isolation: e.g. eastern and western meadowlarks are similar birds whose habitats overlap. But, members of the two species will not mate with each other, partly because they use different songs to attract their mates.
Geographic isolation: e.g. The Abert’s squirrel lives in the Southwest. A small population became isolated on the north rim of the Grand Canyon. Separate gene pools formed. Genetic changes that appeared in one group were not passed to the other.
Temporal isolation: e.g. three similar species of orchids live in the same rain forest. Each species has flowers that last only one day and must be pollinated on that day to produce seeds. Because the species bloom on different days, they cannot pollinate one another.