Imagine that a scientist wants to create a new species of minions-one that is a cross between a shark and a wolf. To his dismay, when he introduces shark sperm and wolf eggs into a petri dish, no viable embryos form. Why?
A)The wolf eggs and shark sperm are temporally separated.
B)This is an example of behavioral isolation-the shark sperm do not perform the correct courtship rituals to fertilize the wolf eggs.
C)This is due to selection among embryos favoring the pure shark and pure wolf lines.
D)This must be due to post-zygotic isolation.
E)This could be an example of pre-zygotic isolation, where the proteins of the shark sperm and wolf eggs do not interact properly; however, this could also be an example of genetic incompatibility, where genomic differences between sharks and wolves prevent the formation of viable embryos.

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The correct answer is E because it addresses the fundamental biological barriers to cross-species reproduction. Pre-zygotic isolation mechanisms, such as incompatible reproductive proteins, and genetic incompatibility due to vast genomic differences between species like sharks and wolves, would prevent the formation of viable embryos.

Imagine That a Scientist Wants to Create a New Species