Understanding Rabbit Genetics: Phenotypes and Proportions in Offspring

What are the phenotypes and proportions in the offspring when a male rabbit with genotype GGbb is crossed with a female rabbit with genotype ggBb?

Half (8/16) of the offspring will have gray fur and black eyes.

Half (8/16) of the offspring will have gray fur and red eyes.

None (0/16) of the offspring will have white fur.

Understanding Rabbit Genetics: Phenotypes and Proportions

When a male rabbit with genotype GGbb is crossed with a female rabbit with genotype ggBb, the resulting offspring's phenotypes and proportions can be determined through a Punnett square analysis. In this scenario, we consider the following alleles and their corresponding traits:

Alleles:

  • G: gray fur (dominant)
  • g: white fur (recessive)
  • B: black eyes (dominant)
  • b: red eyes (recessive)

Based on the given genotypes, the male rabbit can only produce gametes with allele G and b (Gb), while the female rabbit can produce gametes with alleles gB or gb. As such, the Punnett square can be simplified as follows:

        |   Gb   |   gB
   ------------|---------|------
     GgBb      | GgBb    | GgBB
     Ggbb      | Ggbb    | Ggbb
  

From the Punnett square analysis, it is clear that all offspring will have the genotype Gg, resulting in gray fur. When it comes to eye color, half of the offspring will have the genotype Bb, leading to black eyes, while the other half will have the genotype bb, resulting in red eyes.

This explains why half of the offspring will have gray fur and black eyes, half will have gray fur and red eyes, and none will have white fur in this particular genetic cross.

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