Which of these would support a population remaining at genetic equilibrium / NOT evolving? (In other words, which of these would not cause a population to evolve?)

Question

BlackTom AI · Accepted Answer

Question restatement: Which of these would support a population remaining at genetic equilibrium / NOT evolving? (In other words, which of these would not cause a population to evolve?)

Option a: Mating is random. When mating is random, allele combinations are produced in the same proportions each generation, assuming other conditions of the Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium are met (large population, no selection, no migration, no mutation, no drift). This helps maintain genetic equilibrium, because allele frequencies remain constant across generations.

Option b: Migration occurs. Gene flow through migration introduces new alleles or alters allele frequencies in the population, which can cause evolution in the recipient population and thus disrupt equilibrium.

Option c: There is genetic drift. Genetic drift is random change in allele frequencies, especially in small populations, which leads to evolution away from equilibrium.

Option d: New mutations arise. Mutations introduce new alleles and change allele frequencies, which drives evolutionary change and disrupts equilibrium.

Option e: Natural selection occurs. Selection changes allele frequencies by differential survival and reproduction, causing evolution away from equilibrium.

Additional notes on concepts to help understanding:
- Genetic equilibrium (Hardy-Weinberg) requires no forces that alter allele frequencies from generation to generation. Any factor listed here that alters those frequencies will break equilibrium.
- Random mating helps prevent assortative mating biases that could change genotype frequencies relative to allele frequencies, supporting the idea of constant allele frequencies across generations when other HW conditions are also met.
- Real populations often experience some combination of these forces, which is why Hardy-Weinberg is a null model used to detect evolutionary change.

BIO 181 (001&002) FALL 2025 FA25: Cumulative Exam 4 covers the most important content from Units 1-4: You can do this!!! : ) [Grade is out of 150/900 pts, the same am't of pts for the active learning "easy points" classwork.]

Which of these would support a population remaining at genetic equilibrium / NOT evolving? (In other words, which of these would not cause a population to evolve?)

View Explanation

Log in for full answers

Similar Questions

You are researching a population of 100 cows, where 91 of them are grey and 9 are black. You know that black colour is a recessive trait for this type of cow. Using the Hardy-Weinberg Equilibrium equation (p2 + 2pq + q2 = 1), what number would be heterozygous?

Assuming the population is in Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium, if 16% of the individuals in a population show a recessive trait (q2=16%), what is the allelic frequency for the dominant allele?

What occurs to allele frequencies when a population is at Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium?

What would disrupt the conditions required for Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium?

The allele for brown eyes (B) is found within a population at a frequency of 0.7; the allele for blue eyes (b) at a frequency of 0.3. If the conditions for Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium are satisfied, what will be the expected frequency of heterozygous (Bb) individuals?

Which of the following factors would cause a population to deviate from Hardy–Weinberg equilibrium?

What occurs to allele frequencies when a population is at Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium?

You are researching a population of 100 cows, where 91 of them are grey and 9 are black. You know that the black colour is a recessive trait for this type of cows. Using the Hardy-Weinberg Equilibrium equation (p2+ 2pq + q2 = 1), what number would be heterozygous?

More Practical Tools for Students Powered by AI Study Helper

Homework AI Solver

Stylized AI Paper Writer

Plagiarism Checker Assistant

Citation AI Academic Writing Tool

In-Class Translation Assistant

AI Note Generator

AI Quiz Answers

Past Exam Questions from University Test Bank

Smart Practice Assistant

Adaptive Practice

Making Your Study Simpler