MEASUREMENT OF FITNESS AT THE ESTERASE-5 LOCUS IN <i>DROSOPHILA PSEUDOOBSCURA</i>

Abstract

KNOWLEDGE of the amount of genic variation in natural populations is the first step towards understanding how such variation is maintained. The first systematic studies of the amount of genic variation in natural populations of Drosophila pseudoobscura were reported by HUBBY, LEWONTIN, and co-workers Similar estimates of heterozygosity have now been made for several organisms, including mice (SELANDER and YANG 1969) and humans (HARRIS 1969; LEWONTIN 1967). All these estimates indicate that the proportion of polymorphic loci in natural populations may be much greater than was previously supposed.