Study Questions for Speciation Mechanisms

1. What are the two critical conditions for Sympatric speciation?

2. Why do behavioral isolation mechanisms between species evolve? Isn't sterility enough to keep species from mixing?

3. How does the evolution of host-plant choice satisfy the conditions required for sympatric speciation?

4. Describe an experimental design which manipulates species recognition cues by altering the signals that are important for recognition (Use the sea gull example).

5. When the two ends of a ring species meet and do individuals do not interbreed and they evolve a behavioral isolating mechanisms (e.g., sea gulls), how can we can them separate species if gene flow is possible all along the length of the ring?

6. Explain how one mode of selection contributes to the speciation and the evolution of species recognition mechanisms. (again an answer requiring information from two lectures).