To analyze:
The genetic makeup of the offspring of aspens growing on the Orkney Islands.
Introduction:
Due to evolutionary adaptation most plants having two different options for reproduction. Apart from the usual sexual reproduction certain plants also produce young ones by asexual reproduction. Asexual reproduction is mostly prevalent among plants growing in marginal habitats. This is because, such habitats may limit the survival of seeds or, because of small
Explanation of Solution
Aspens are a species of tree that thrives in the cool regions of Europe, Asia, and North America. Occasionally, however, aspens take root in inhospitable places. Aspens on the Orkneys produce seeds that seem to be unable to germinate and generate new trees in the harsh climate, possibly due to inadequate soil moisture and limited light availability.
This inability to reproduce sexually would seem to be a fatal limitation to aspens’ survival on these islands. In the Orkneys, the aspens only reproduce asexually. They develop shoots, called suckers that sprout from horizontal underground stems and can give rise to new, genetically identical trees. One tree can give rise to dozens or even hundreds of new trees, all genetically identical.
Due to asexual reproduction of the aspens in the Orkneys there is no
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