Compared to larger populations, smaller populations of organisms, such as some groups of cheetahs in East Afri

Question

Compared to larger populations, smaller populations of organisms, such as some groups of cheetahs in East Africa, accumulate mutations at a faster rate within the population. This accumulation of mutations increases the            of the population.

GPT-5 mini · Answer

genetic load (mutational load)

Explanation: small populations accumulate deleterious mutations more rapidly through drift and inbreeding, increasing the population's genetic (mutational) load — the burden of harmful alleles that lowers average fitness.

Compared to larger populations, smaller populations of organisms, such as some groups of cheetahs in East Africa, accumulate mutations at a faster rate within the population. This accumulation of mutations increases the of the population.

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