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Northern elephant seals, Mirounga angustirostris, were nearly hunted to extinction in the 1890s, with only about 20 individuals left at the end of the century - VCE - SSCE Biology - Question 40 - 2015 - Paper 1
Question 40
Northern elephant seals, Mirounga angustirostris, were nearly hunted to extinction in the 1890s, with only about 20 individuals left at the end of the century. The p... show full transcript
Worked Solution & Example Answer:Northern elephant seals, Mirounga angustirostris, were nearly hunted to extinction in the 1890s, with only about 20 individuals left at the end of the century - VCE - SSCE Biology - Question 40 - 2015 - Paper 1
Step 1
B. northern elephant seals would show less genetic variation than southern elephant seals.
Answer
The northern elephant seals experienced a significant population bottleneck due to near extinction, resulting in a limited genetic pool. This phenomenon typically leads to reduced genetic variation. In contrast, the southern elephant seals, with a much larger population size, maintain greater genetic diversity. Hence, statement B is correct.