Natural Selection Virtual Lab Go https://phet.colorado.edu/sims/html/natural-selection/latest/natural-selection_en.html and click on “Lab” button. Play with the simulation until you feel comfortable with the controls. Select the orange reset button on the bottom right when you are finished and ready to begin the lab. You should have a single white bunny in a brown environment. Be sure the “Total” box is checked. Be sure the “Population” bubble is selected. There are two buttons on the top right: one for winter and one for summer. Be sure the summer one is selected. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. Click add a mate. Let it run one generation and pause. Click on recessive brown fur mutation. Let run until brown bunnies appear. Click on wolves and allow to run for three cycles. What happens? 7. Leave the brown recessive mutation on and click on the long teeth recessive mutation. Remove the wolf selection. 8. Allow to run for three cycles and pause. 9. Click on tough food and allow to run for five cycles and pause. 10. Click on “Proportions” What is the phenotype of the population? 11. Click on floppy ears as a recessive mutation and run for several cycles. Keep an eye on the graph and notice when the “floppy ears” line starts to rise. Based on this data, how do you think the floppy ears mutation helped the population? 12. Click on “limited food” and run for several cycles. Look at your “Proportions” again. What is your population data now? Fur color Ear type Teeth type White Brown Straight Floppy Short Long Number of bunnies 13. Add in wolves and change the season to winter. Run for several generations. How did the population’s phenotype affect their fitness level?
