What is the Difference Between Founder Effect and Bottleneck Effect?
🆚 Go to Comparative Table 🆚The founder effect and the bottleneck effect are both types of genetic drift, which are changes in the frequency of alleles in a population due to random events. They differ in the type of event that causes them:
- Founder effect: This occurs when a small group of individuals is separated from the rest of the population, often due to colonization or migration. As a result, the genetic diversity of the new population may be reduced, and the frequencies of alleles in the original population may not be represented accurately. For example, the Afrikaner population of Dutch settlers in South Africa is descended mainly from a few colonists, leading to an unusually high frequency of the gene that causes Huntington's disease.
- Bottleneck effect: This happens when a significant portion of the population is destroyed, often due to a catastrophic event, leaving only a small number of individuals to reproduce and pass on their genes. The genetic diversity of the remaining population may be reduced, and the frequencies of alleles may not be representative of the original population. For example, the Northern elephant seal population experienced a bottleneck effect due to extensive hunting, leading to reduced genetic variation.
In both cases, genetic diversity is reduced, but the type of event leading to that result is different. This is why these two types of genetic drift are classified separately.
Comparative Table: Founder Effect vs Bottleneck Effect
The Founder Effect and Bottleneck Effect are both phenomena that result in a loss of genetic diversity within a population. However, they differ in their causes and consequences. Here is a table summarizing the differences between the two effects:
| Feature | Founder Effect | Bottleneck Effect |
|---|---|---|
| Causes | A small group of individuals separates from the rest of the population, often due to migration or colonization. | A sharp reduction in the size of a population due to environmental factors (e.g., floods, fires, disease, or droughts) or human activities (e.g., genocide). |
| Results | Reduced genetic variation from the original population, and a non-random sample of the genes in the original population. | Reduced genetic variation and a non-random sample of the genes in the original population. |
| Consequences | The population may not be able to adapt to new selection pressures, such as climatic change or a shift in available resources, due to the reduced genetic variation. | The population may struggle to adapt to new selection pressures due to the reduced genetic variation. |
Both the Founder Effect and Bottleneck Effect can lead to genetic drift, which is a mechanism of evolution in which allele frequencies of a population change over time. The consequences of these effects can be harmful to the affected populations, as they may become less able to adapt to new environmental challenges or resources.
- Founder Effect vs Genetic Drift
- Founder vs Co-Founder
- Cause vs Effect
- Impact vs Effect
- Pasteur Effect vs Crabtree Effect
- Bohr Effect vs Root Effect
- Efficiency vs Effectiveness
- Inductive Effect vs Resonance Effect
- Bohr Effect vs Haldane Effect
- Cost Benefit vs Cost Effectiveness
- Diminishing Returns vs Diseconomies of Scale
- Buffer Action vs Buffer Capacity
- Effective vs Efficient
- Phenomenon vs Phenomena
- Cause vs Factor
- Natural Selection vs Genetic Drift
- Affected vs Effected
- Top-Down Approach vs Bottom-Up Approach
- Biotic Potential vs Carrying Capacity