![]() Scientists have collected data from a population of primarily darkcoloured mice living in an area of basalt called the Pinacate lava flow in Arizona, as well as from a nearby light-coloured population. However, populations of primarily dark-coloured rock pocket mice have been found living in areas where the ground is covered in a dark rock called basalt caused by geologic lava flows thousands of years ago. Most rock pocket mice have a sandy, light-coloured coat that enables them to blend in with the light color of the desert rocks and sand on which they live. The Rock Pocket Mouse: The rock pocket mouse, Chaetodipus intermedius, is a small, nocturnal animal found in the deserts of the south-western United States. In this activity we will further examine the genetic and molecular basis for the production of fur colour. In the review activities for modules 1 and 2, we learned about a protein called MC1R that is found in the cell membranes of specific mouse cells called melanocytes, whose job it is to produce the pigment melanin, which gives mice the colouration of their fur. ![]() To prepare for this module, in the review activities for the first 3 modules we will be examining the molecular, cellular, and genetic basis for mouse coat colour. Laroche: Mouse Colouration During module 4 on evolution, we will spend several classes examining the evolutionary significance of fur colour in a certain group of mice from the Sonoran desert in the South-Western United States.
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