Mathematics

Sourdough

15 May, 04:26

Imagine you are studying a population of finches on one of the Galåpagos Islands. You have been recording many of the birds' physical traits, including the length of both wings. You observe that for 80% of individuals measured, the length of the left wing is not significantly different from the length of the right wing (in other words, they are symmetrical). But for about 20% of birds measured, the wing lengths are asymmetrical. This distribution is true from generation to generation. Suddenly, a rare 5-day windstorm takes over the island. After the storm, you spend the next several days netting each bird on the island that survived the storm. You discover that 85% of the birds with symmetrical wings survived the storm, whereas only 5% of the birds with asymmetrical wings did. Propose a hypothesis to explain this observation.