How did the rock pocket mice change color?
The illustrations and short film show that there is natural variation of coat color in the population of rock pocket mice living on the lava flow. The short film explains that mutations can cause a change in coat color, and that these genetic changes are being passed on to offspring.
How and why does the color of the rock pocket mice in location B change over time?
Over time, dark-colored mice became more common at location B because more of their offspring survived to reproduce and pass on their genes, including the gene for fur color. 4. Use the data and what you have learned about evolution to explain how mutation is a random process, but natural selection is not random.
Why did dark-colored rock pocket mice become more common?
Why did dark-colored rock pocket mice first appear in a population of light-colored rock pocket mice? Individuals change color to blend in with the environment. There is dark lava rock in the area where they live. They have a genetic mutation that affects their fur color.
What is the variation in the rock pocket mouse scenario?
Mice living on light-colored sand tend to have light-colored coats, while mice living on patches of dark-colored rock have mostly dark-colored coats. Michael Nachman studies the evolutionary processes that led to these marked differences in rock pocket mouse populations.
Why did dark colored rock pocket mice first appear in a population of light colored rock pocket mice quizlet?
Why did dark-colored rock pocket mice first appear in a population of light-colored rock pocket mice? They have a genetic mutation that affects their fur color.
How does a dark mouse appear in a population of light mice?
The environment “selects” those individuals with the most favorable traits to survive and reproduce. How does a dark mouse appear in a population of light mice? Gene mutations cause the darker mice.
Why didn’t the dark colored mice become more common in the population in location A?
Explain the presence of dark-colored mice at location A. Why didn’t this phenotype become more common in the population? The dark-colored mice arose in the population at location A by random mutation. The phenotype did not become more common because it did not afford a selective advantage to the mice.
Why did dark colored rock pocket mice first appear in population of light colored rock pocket mice?
Why did dark-colored rock pocket mice first appear in a population of light-colored rock pocket mice? They have a genetic mutation that affects their fur color. There is dark lava rock in the area where they live. Individuals change color to blend in with the environment.
Why are some mice light colored and some mice dark colored?
Why were some mice light colored and some mice dark colored? Some dark mice evolved to be as dark as the rock. The color change is occurred precisely where it would conceal the mice from hunters. The dark mice came to be because the DNA went through a random and spontaneous mutation.
Are dark and light rock pocket mice the same species?
Rock pocket mice are generally light-colored and live on light-colored rocks. However, populations of dark (melanic) mice are found on dark lava, and this concealing coloration provides protection from avian and mammalian predators.
Why do rock pocket mice have color variations of dark and light in the dessert?
Rock pocket mice can have either light-colored or dark-colored fur. As shown in the animation, mice that blend in with their surroundings are harder for owls and other predators to see. The dark-colored mouse is more vulnerable to predators in light-colored environments, such as sandy deserts.
Why did dark colored rock pocket mice first appear in a population of light colored rock pocket mice?