After the last major ice age, sea levels around the world rose. As they did, the rising waters divided what was once a single island in the North Sea into two different islands. A population of rabbits was split between the two islands. Ten thousand years passed with no contact between the two rabbit groups. In recent times, a scientist attempted to breed individuals from the two groups, but he was unsuccessful in doing so. Why were rabbits from the two groups unable to produce offspring together?

Question

Rayna Gould

Biology

27 July, 16:41

After the last major ice age, sea levels around the world rose. As they did, the rising waters divided what was once a single island in the North Sea into two different islands. A population of rabbits was split between the two islands. Ten thousand years passed with no contact between the two rabbit groups. In recent times, a scientist attempted to breed individuals from the two groups, but he was unsuccessful in doing so. Why were rabbits from the two groups unable to produce offspring together?

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Eleanor Kaufman · Answer 1

Two organisms are of the same species if they can reproduce and have fertile viable offspring. So, in this situation, the geographic barrier that had separated the two groups allowed them to split into two separate species. This process is otherwise known as speciation.