Question

all of these are examples of random evolutionary processes except
a. an earthquake divides a single elk species into two populations, forcing them to no longer interbreed.
b. a mutation in a flower plant results in a new variety.
c. an especially long winter causes a group of migrating birds to shift their home range.
d. a mutation results in a population of trees that spread their seeds more widely than their peers, causing their population to grow.

Explanation:

Random evolutionary processes (like genetic drift, mutation, random environmental events) are non - directional and not driven by an organism's need or advantage.

• Option A: Earthquake dividing a species (geographic isolation, a random event) is a random evolutionary process (can lead to speciation via drift etc.).
• Option B: Mutation is a random change in DNA, so a mutation creating a new flower variety is random.
• Option C: A long winter (a random environmental event) causing birds to shift range is a random process affecting evolution.
• Option D: The mutation here gives a survival/reproductive advantage (spreading seeds more widely, leading to population growth), which is natural selection - a non - random process as it favors traits that increase fitness. So this is not a random evolutionary process.

Answer:

D. a mutation results in a population of trees that spread their seeds more widely than their peers, causing their population to grow.