Hunger Games Lab

1. In this lab, we experimented on how populations evolves and how allele frequency changes. In the start of the experiment, we had around equal amounts of the three types of birds, and allele frequencies. After a while, the stumpys died off, but eventually came back through the mating of knucklers. This simulates the process of directional selection, as the birds population consisted of more and more pinchers.
2. The pinchers were the best at gathering food, because they could use their fingers to pick up food, which is what humans have the easiest time doing, instead of using knuckles or wrists.
3. The population evolved, because it consisted of more pinchers than it did in the beginning. The "a" allele in the gene pool changes from around 50% to 5%.
4. The process of mating was not random, because everyone wanted to produce more knucklers. The distribution of food was both random and not random. It was random, as the food was spread out evenly in terms of around the circle. It was not spread out evenly in terms of where the food was placed.
5. If the food was larger, the stumpys would have a better time collecting food, and if they were smaller, then the stumpys would have a harder time collecting food. This would affect the survival of the stumpys and the gene pool. This might happen in nature, such as for birds, the beaks would evolve bigger to be able to pick up the big food better, or evolve smaller to be able to pick up the smaller food better.
6. If there was not incomplete dominance, then the "A" allele would be a bigger part of the gene pool, as it wouldn't be selected against as much, as the "Aa" organisms would be pinchers.
7. Natural selection can lead to evolution. Organisms with the traits that are selected against would die off, and the organisms with the traits that are selected for would prosper. The population would then evolve toward being more like the organisms with the food traits.
8. Some people cheated, and used their hands in order to have a better chance of survival. Some stumpys scooped up their food to gather them more efficiently. This would have affected the allele frequency of the population to be more like the ones with more efficient gathering skills. This could happen in nature, if the more fierce and competitive organisms gathered food better.
9. In evolution, the population, and not the individual organisms evolve. Natural selection acts on the phenotype, because the ones with more physical capability can survive better. One example of this is that if heterozygous organisms were pinchers, they would not have a disadvantage towards the homozygous pinchers, and therefore would not be selected against.
10. What happens if the "A" allele dies out completely, and then nature selects against the "a" allele after all the "A" alleles are gone?

    

    Allele Frequency Graph