“Microevolution”__________Biology 16th Chapter

A. Hardy-Weinberg Equilibrium
A theoretical state in which allele frequencies do not change from one generation
to another.
H-W Equilibrium is only possible if:
1. Large
2. Randomly mating
3. Free from migration, mutation, or natural selection

Hardy-Weinberg Equation:
p² + 2pq + q² = 1
p² = frequency of homozygous dominant individuals

2pq = frequency of heterozygotes

q² = frequency of homozygous recessive individuals

p = frequency of dominant allele

q = frequency of recessive allele

note: p+q=1
H-W Equilibrium provides a background against which microevolution can be detected

B. Factors that cause microevolution in natural populations

1. Nonrandom mating

2. Migration
Individuals migrate between populations
• Immigrating individuals introduce new alleles and migrating individuals
remove alleles
o Gene flow is the movement of alleles between populations

3. Genetic Drift
A change in the gene pool of a small population due to chance

• Founder effect – genetic drift due to a few individuals founding a new group
o Unlikely that gene pool of founding population is representative of
original population
• Population Bottleneck – genetic drift due to high mortality in a population
 o Unlikely that gene pool of the remaining population is representative
of original population

4. Mutation
A change in the DNA – introduces new alleles into the population

5. Natural Selection
Types of Natural Selection
1. Directional Selection – Environment selects against one
phenotype extreme allowing the other to become more
prevalent
2. Disruptive Selection – Environment selects against
intermediate phenotype, allowing both extremes to become
more prevalent
3. Stabilizing Selection – Environment selects against two
extremes allowing intermediates to become more prevalent