Question

Sclentists working in Gorongosa National Park are trying to determine the genes responsible for tusk development in elephants. Normally, more than 90% of female African elephants have tusks. But in Gorongosa National Park, which has a history of heavy poaching, about 50% of the elephants are tuskless. To study this striking phenomenon, scientists are searching for the gene or genes responsible for tusk development and how variations in these genes can lead to tusklessness.
During the Mozambican Civil War (1977-1992), elephants were heavily hunted for ivory. After the war, researchers documented a significant increase in tuskless female elephants in Gorongosa National Park. Figure 1 shows the percentage of tuskless females pre- and post-war. This change illustrates how human actions can alter evolutionary pressures.


Are the roles to the following
Genetic
Variation
Competition for Survival
Proliferation of Survivors

Hunters removed tusked elephants at higher rates



A small percentage of females carried a tuskless allele


O
Tuskless elephants reproduced more trequently after the war

Answer 1

Yes. Match them this way:

- Genetic variation → "A small percentage of females carried a tuskless allele."
(This describes the heritable genetic difference present in the population.)

- Competition for survival (selection pressure) → "Hunters removed tusked elephants at higher rates."
(Selective removal of tusked individuals changed survival odds.)

- Proliferation of survivors → "Tuskless elephants reproduced more frequently after the war."
(Because tuskless elephants survived at higher rates, their alleles became more common in offspring.)