. By the early 1980s, the population of Florida panthers had dwindled to fewer t
ID: 57831 • Letter: #
Question
. By the early 1980s, the population of Florida panthers had dwindled to fewer than 30. Furthermore, within this population was a high frequency of detrimental traits, including low sperm count and undescended testicles in males, and kinked tails in both sexes. The future for this iconic population was bleak at best. Provide an explanation for the observed detrimental traits. Provide a possible solution that would both increase the likelihood that the population would survive and preserve the genetic identity of this unique population.
Explanation / Answer
Answer
Due to the fewer panthers left in the population, it is facing high genetic load and thus there is a high frequency of detrimental traits which are leading to low sperm count and undescended testicles. This is a classic example of bottleneck effect where the genetic variation decreases and the detrimental traits will lead to fixation.
To reduce the genetic load, the panthers from another population should be introduced in this existing population to increase genetic variation. But the genes of the newly introduced panthers should not swamp with that of Florida panthers. Therefore, a small population of panthers less than the native Florida panther population should be introduced. After introducing the new population, it is necessary to monitor the introduced panthers and their offspring and ensure that their reproduction rate not exceeding the rate of native animals.
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