Founder Effect

Definition

The founder effect is a type of genetic drift that occurs when a small group of individuals becomes isolated from the larger population, leading to changes in the gene pool.

Analogy

Imagine you're at a party with 100 people and everyone has different colored balloons. Suddenly, five people (each with a red balloon) decide to leave and start their own party. In this new party, only red balloons are present - this is similar to how the founder effect works in genetics.

Related terms

Genetic Drift: This refers to random changes in allele frequencies within a population due to chance events.

Population Bottleneck: A sharp reduction in the size of a population due to environmental events or human activities, which can lead to genetic drift.

Isolation: The process by which two species that could interbreed become separated, either geographically or behaviorally, so they cannot interbreed.