This activity supports concepts covered in the film Natural Selection and Adaptation. Students analyze genetic sequence data and draw conclusions about the evolution of coat-color phenotypes in the rock pocket mouse.

The activity begins with students reading a magazine article and watching the film. They then use a genetic code chart, to determine the amino acids encoded by a sequence of the Mc1r gene in different mouse populations. They then compare amino acid sequences to identify variations associated with different coat colors.

The “Resource Google Folder” link directs to a Google Drive folder of resource documents in the Google Docs format. Not all downloadable documents for the resource may be available in this format. The Google Drive folder is set as “View Only”; to save a copy of a document in this folder to your Google Drive, open that document, then select File → “Make a copy.” These documents can be copied, modified, and distributed online following the Terms of Use listed in the “Details” section below, including crediting BioInteractive.