Question

A researcher is studying a population of flies comprised of 100,000 individuals. This population demonstrates positive assortative mating, and does not consist of any subpopulations. Furthermore, all genotypes within this fly population are equally viable. This fly population cannot be in Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium because

A) All genotypes in this population are equally viable

B) It is not infinitely large in size

C) This population is not comprised of any subpopulations

D) This population does not demonstrate random mating

E) Both B and D

Answer 1

According to Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium, allele frequencies of a population remain constant generation after generation when there is no evolutionary factors.

There are 7 assumptions for Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium,

The population is infinitely large in size.

Organisms are diploid.

Only sexual reproduction occurs.

Mating is random.

Allele Frequencies are equal in both sexes.

No selection or mutation.

No migration or immigration is there.

This population cannot be in Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium because D. The population does not demonstrate random matting.

Assortive matting is a matting type in which similar phenotype individuals mate more frequently than random matting . This is a sexual selection.