Investigating Diversity

Question 1

Two groups, when reproductively isolated from each other, become

Answer 1

genetically isolated
If two groups are no longer reproducing with each other, then they do not interchange genes with each other in the production of offspring

Changes that occur in the allele frequencies of each group are not shared, so they evolve independently of each other which can lead to the formation of two groups that are no longer successfully able to interbreed

Question 2

Genetic diversity
Genetic diversity is the number of

what can it be measured by

Answer 2

different alleles of genes

Displays of measurable characteristics
The nucleotide base sequence of DNA
The nucleotide base sequence of mRNA
The amino acid sequence of proteins

Question 3

Measurable and Observable Characteristics
Comparing characteristics of different individuals is usually the ………… form of measuring genetic diversity

Characteristics that could be measured include:

Characteristics that could be observed

Answer 3

quickest but least reliable form of determining genetic diversity

Number of legs
Number of seeds in a berry
Number of petals

Colour
Patterns on fur/scales/feathers
Habitat

Question 4

Problem with observable characteristics is

Answer 4

The problem with this method is that it is not precise enough if only one characteristic is looked at, for example, many animals have four legs

It can be useful if a species has unique characteristics such as tigers

Often if two species cannot be distinguished from their observable characteristics, measurable characteristics will give a better understanding of the similarities and differences