Name: _______________________________________________________________
Monster Genetics Lab
There are many different patterns or modes of inheritance. Some are simple dominant or
recessive, as in Mendelian traits. Some are more complex, such as incomplete dominant or
codominant traits. In this lab you will investigate how a combination of these genes work
together to create an organism.
Part 1 Procedure:
1. Flip a coin twice to determine the genotype for each trait and record it in the data table.
Heads = allele 1, Tails = allele 2 (Example: if you flipped heads twice, your monster
will have two copies of allele 1 for his genotype.)
2. Determine the phenotype resulting from the allele pair for each trait.
3. Repeat steps 1‐2 for each trait and complete the female monster’s Table 1.
Table 1: Genotypes & Phenotypes for Female Monster
Trait
Allele 1
Allele 2
Genotype
Phenotype
Head shape
Triangular(T)
Round (t)
Eye
Two small eyes (E)
One large eye (e)
Eye Color
(incomplete)
Body Shape
Red (R)
White (R’)
Oval (O)
Square (o)
Skin Color
(codominant)
Tail Shape
Green (G)
Blue (B)
Curly (C)
Straight (c)
Tail Color
Purple (P)
Orange (p)
Tail
(regulatory gene)
Teeth
Have tail (H)
No tail (h)
Sharp (S)
Round (s)
Feet
(incomplete)
Horn Color
Four toes (F)
Two toes (F’)
Purple (W)
White (w)
Ear shape
Pointy (Y)
Round (y)
Ears
(regulatory)
Claws
No ears (N)
Two ears (n)
Long (L)
Short (l)
Hair Color
AABB=Black
AaBB=Dark Brown
aaBB=Yellow
AABb=Black
AaBb=Light Brown
aaBb=Yellow
AAbb=Red
Aabb=Orange
aabb=Grey (you will need to flip the penny
twice, once for A/a allele and once for B/b allele)
Name: _______________________________________________________________
Concluding Questions:
1. Why is the coin flip used to represent the selection of alleles?
2. What is an example of a heterozygous combination?
3. What is an example of a homozygous recessive combination?
4. What is an example of a homozygous dominant combination?
5. Explain the following modes of inheritance:
A. Mendelian Dominance
1. Description:
2. How are the allele combinations expressed?:
3. Give an example of a trait from this lab that follows this mode of inheritance:
B. Co - Dominance
1. Description:
2. How are the allele combinations expressed?:
3. Give an example of a trait from this lab that follows this mode of inheritance
C. Incomplete Dominance
1. Description:
2. How are the allele combinations expressed?:
3. Give two examples of traits from this lab that follows this mode of inheritance
6. What is the mode of inheritance expressed in hair color?
Illustrate your Monster Baby: