Correct option is B
Vicariance refers to the process where a population is geographically divided by a physical barrier, such as a river or mountain range, leading to the isolation of populations. In this case, tectonic uplift alters the drainage patterns of rivers, which creates a barrier to the movement of species, causing isolation. This process is an example of vicariance because the physical changes in the landscape separate populations, limiting gene flow between them.
Information Booster:
Vicariance occurs when a physical barrier (e.g., a river, mountain, or tectonic uplift) divides a species’ habitat, leading to population isolation and, eventually, speciation due to restricted gene flow.
It is contrasted with dispersal, where organisms actively move to new areas, rather than being passively isolated by changes in the environment.
Range expansion refers to the increase in the geographic area occupied by a species but does not involve isolation or speciation.
Competitive exclusion involves one species outcompeting another, leading to the local extinction of the inferior competitor, which is unrelated to population isolation caused by geographic barriers.
Additional Information:
(a) Dispersal: This process involves the movement of individuals from one location to another, but it does not involve the isolation of populations due to geographic barriers.
(c) Range expansion: This describes the spread of a species into new habitats, which is not the same as isolation due to physical barriers.
(d) Competitive exclusion: This principle states that two species competing for the same resource cannot coexist indefinitely, but this is not related to the geographic isolation caused by tectonic activity.
