Question

within a population of moths, the color black (b) is dominant over the color gray (b). 40% of moths in a given population in an urban park are black. over time, the tree bark darkens and the black moths become camouflaged. eventually only 4% show the recessive phenotype, gray. what are the frequencies of the p and q alleles in the final population? a p = .4; q = .6 b p = .8; q = .2 c p = .96; q = .04 d p = 9.6; q = .4

Explanation:

Step1: Define allele frequencies

Let \( p = \text{frequency of dominant allele (B)}, q = \text{frequency of recessive allele (b)}. \) Recessive phenotype (gray) = \( q^2 \).

Step2: Calculate q

Gray phenotype = 4% = 0.04. So \( q = \sqrt{0.04} = 0.2 \).

Step3: Calculate p

Using \( p + q = 1 \), \( p = 1 - q = 1 - 0.2 = 0.8 \).

Answer:

B. p = .8; q = .2