A biologist wants to determine if the coloration of a popula…
A biologist wants to determine if the coloration of a population of beetles evolves in response to the introduction of a new predator species. There are two alleles in the population determine beetle color. The “A” allele is dominant and results in the production of brown pigment. The “a” allele is recessive and results in the complete loss of pigment production. As a result, beetles come in three colors. Homozygous dominant beetles (AA) are dark brown, heterozygous beetles (Aa) are tan, and homozygous recessive beetles (aa) are white. At the start of the study, prior to the introduction of the predator species, there are 15 dark brown beetles, 30 tan beetles, and 16 white beetles. Five years after the introduction of the predator species, there are 40 dark brown beetles, 30 tan beetles, and 6 white beetles. What are the observed genotype and allele frequencies at the start of the study? Round all frequencies to 2 decimal places. AA = Aa = aa = A = a = What are the expected genotype frequencies at the start of the study if the population is in Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium? Round all frequencies to 2 decimal places. AA = Aa = aa = Does the population appear to be in Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium at the start of the study? Explain your answer. What are the observed genotype and allele frequencies after 5 years of predation? Round all frequencies to 2 decimal places. AA = Aa = aa = A = a = Based on your calculations, is it likely that the population is evolving in response to predation or not? Explain your reasoning.