Asexual species may become extinct sooner than sexual ones because:
a. the limited diversity in offspring reduces the chances for survival during periods of change
b. asexual species multiply faster than the food supply
c. sexual species can hibernate during extreme weather
d. none of the above
2007-03-08 13:27:27 · 7 answers · asked by shane200388 1 in Science & Mathematics ➔ Biology
Definitely a.
Think of it this way...
If 3/4 of the human population could only digest cabbage and the whole of the cabbage supply in the world ran out, only 1/4 of the population survives.
Of this population,1/2 can only digest jam dough-nuts, made only by members of the population that's already extinct.
So only 1/8 of the population survives.
If this 1/8 is reliant on fresh water, but all the water sources have been contaminated, by the corpses of the rest of the population, you get the extinction of a whole species pretty quickly.
2007-03-08 13:43:10 · answer #1 · answered by mia_in_nz 2 · 0⤊ 1⤋
Shane,
Asexual species reproduce by binary fission. That just means that the cell gets bigger, duplicates its DNA, and divides. There's no opportunity for the extreme diversity possible in sexual reproduction (achieved by both meiosis and random combination of egg and sperm). The "daughter" cells produced by asexual reproduction are exact clones of their parents.
Thus, the correct answer is A. In periods of environmental change, the opportunity for diversity in sexually-reproducing species will likely result in some offspring that can adapt and survive. In an asexual species, evolution does occur, though over generations and generations, not just short periods of time. The asexual species might still survive, but the sexual species has the advantage.
B is incorrect because the asexual species can't divide until their cells get big enough to split, which doesn't happen if it can't get enough food. If there isn't enough food, the species will die, and its cell cycle will be stuck in its dormant state, Gzero.
C is incorrect - not all sexual species can hibernate!
2007-03-08 21:35:51 · answer #2 · answered by Mina C 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
a. the limited diversity in offspring reduces the chances for survival during periods of change
2007-03-08 21:31:47 · answer #3 · answered by Ji k 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
definitely A
2007-03-08 21:56:03 · answer #4 · answered by James h 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
A
2007-03-08 21:31:02 · answer #5 · answered by Josh S 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
A
2007-03-08 21:29:58 · answer #6 · answered by MEEEEEEEEE 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
a, i think
2007-03-08 21:30:39 · answer #7 · answered by chrishomingtang 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋