Natural Selection Unit Test Unit 5 Lesson 12

Question

Notice the population of beetles. The allele for color is seen on their backs: green (g) and brown (G) alleles. Green beetles are homozygous, gg. Brown beetles are heterozygous Gg in this population sample. The beetles' habitat is an old growth forest, where they burrow into the trees' bark for food and shelter. The coloration of the beetles help them to hide from predators, such as birds.
Imagine this scenario. During the spring and summer the old growth forest has been plagued with wildfires. The ground litter as well as the leaves on the trees have been burned. Only very young trees are destroyed in the fire though; the old growth trees still stand. How would this impact the beetle population, if at all?

(1 point)
Responses

Since the leaf litter and small trees burned, we would expect a decline in the brown beetle population.
Since the leaf litter and small trees burned, we would expect a decline in the brown beetle population.

The wildfires destroyed all food sources for the beetles; we would expect to see a decline in both green and brown beetles.
The wildfires destroyed all food sources for the beetles; we would expect to see a decline in both green and brown beetles.

Due to the wildfires, the entire beetle population would decline because they would not longer be camouflaged from predators.
Due to the wildfires, the entire beetle population would decline because they would not longer be camouflaged from predators.

The leaves will be destroyed and the green beetle population would decline because they would no longer be camouflaged from predators.
The leaves will be destroyed and the green beetle population would decline because they would no longer be camouflaged from predators.

Answer 1

Since the leaf litter and small trees have been burned in the wildfires, the brown beetle population would likely decline. This is because the brown beetles rely on their camouflaged coloration to hide from predators in the forest. With the brown beetles no longer able to blend in with their environment, they would be more easily seen and targeted by predators. On the other hand, the green beetle population may not be as affected since their green coloration would still allow them to blend in with the remaining old growth trees. Therefore, the impact of the wildfires on the beetle population would likely lead to a decline in the brown beetle population, while the green beetle population may remain relatively stable.