Question

What is genetic drift?

Answer 1

Genetic drift is the change in the frequency of an existing allele in a population due to random sampling of organisms.

Explanation:

The effect of genetic drift is larger when there are few copies of an allele, whereas when there are many copies the effect is smaller.

Genetic drift describes random fluctuations in the number of gene variants in a population. Once it begins, genetic drift will continue until the involved allele is either lost by a population or until it is the only allele present in a population at a particular locus. Both possibilities reduce the genetic diversity of a population.

Genetic drift can cause a new population to be genetically distinct from its original population, which has led to the hypothesis that it plays a role in the evolution of new species.