Watch this video about the evolution of the Rock Pocket Mouse. As you watch think about how this example meets the requirements for evolution by natural selection. 

• Variation - What variation is found in the fur color of the mice?
• Heritability - Is the trait caused by a gene? Is the gene passed down from from parents to offspring?
• Selective - Is one version of the trait better than another, allowing the environment to select some individuals to survive while others die?
• Reproductive Advantage - Does one version of the trait allow for some individuals to have more offspring than other individuals? 

Analysis activity: Complete in your notebook on page ________________ or digitally on your chromebook. You will submit photos/screenshots of this work in the next assignment. It might be helpful to look at the next assignment page so see how it is set up before starting this work. 

Dr. Nachman and his colleagues were studying the evolution of the rock pocket mouse. They wanted to see if they could recreate the circumstances that resulted in the diversity of color in rock pocket mouse color. They introduced a large population of variegated mice into the lava covered landscape. Each month they collected 50 mice and recorded the amount of dark fur each mouse had on a scale from 1 to 10 (10 = 100% dark fur). They wanted to know if the mice would evolve by natural selection over the course of the five year experiment. 

1. Make a prediction about what will happen to the mouse coloration over the course of 5 years.
2. Make a  graph of the data. Make a bar graph with the month 1 data in one color and the month 60 data in another color. Color score should be on the x-axis. 

3. CER: Did the mice evolve? Use the information in the graphs, and your understanding of natural selection, to explain the color changes that have occurred in the mouse population over the 5 year timeline. You should type this response so it can be copied into the next assignment. 

Claim: Did the mice evolve by natural selection? 

Evidence: Use at least two data points that support your claim.

Reasoning: How does natural selection occur? How does the data show that natural selection occurred?

4. Take a photo of your graphs and CER and submit them to canvas in the next assignment.