Question

A bee leaves its nest, joins another nest, and reproduces. This is an example of gene flow.
When the bee contributes to the gene pool of the new nest, which of these most likely increases?

Natural Selection

Reproductive Mutations

Environmental Fitness

Genetic Variation

Answer 1

When the bee contributes to the gene pool of the new nest, the factor that most likely increases is **Genetic Variation**. Gene flow, which occurs when individuals from one population (or nest, in this case) contribute their genes to another population, introduces new alleles into the gene pool, thereby increasing genetic diversity within that population. This increased genetic variation can enhance the population's ability to adapt to changing environments, potentially affecting other evolutionary processes like natural selection, but the immediate effect of gene flow is an increase in genetic variation.