Heritable variation | Science | Quizalize & Oak National Academy

Starter quiz

Where is the genetic material stored in plant and animal cells?
- 'Nucleus' ✓
True or false? Boys look like their Dad and girls look like their Mum.
- True
- False ✓
Genetic information is stored as ______ in the nucleus.
- 'chromosomes' ✓
How many chromosomes does each human parent pass onto their offspring?
- 30
- 46
- 23 ✓
- 32
Which features do these cats not share?
- fur pattern ✓
- eye shape
- ear position
- presence of fur
Who is right?
- Andeep: These cats are different species because they look different.
- Alex: These cats are both the same species as they share many characteristics. ✓
- Sam: These cats could be related as they look similar. ✓
- Jun: The cats are definitely not related.

What is the term for differences between individuals of the same species?
- 'Variation' ✓
Which of the following are examples of environmental variation in plants?
- leaf shape
- plant diseases ✓
- wilting ✓
Which of the following is not a lifestyle factor that causes variation.
- ear piercing
- diet
- tattoos
- exercise
- blood type ✓
Heritable means features that ...
- an organism can choose to have or not have.
- are passed on from parents to their offspring. ✓
- develop over a lifetime.
Which are examples of inherited variation?
- hair length
- scars
- fur colour ✓
- skin colour ✓
- ability to digest milk ✓
Which traits are caused by a combination of genetic and lifestyle factors.
- natural hair colour
- height ✓
- hair length
- body mass ✓

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There are differences in the features of individuals of the same species, and this is called variation.
Some variation is caused by the environment (e.g. injuries) or lifestyle (e.g. exercising to grow big muscles).
Environmental variation is not heritable, it cannot be passed on to offspring.
Some variation is caused by genetic information (e.g. the instructions for making claws or camouflaged skin).
Genetic variation is heritable, it can be passed on to offspring.

It is common for students to believe that all types of variation can be passed on from parents to their offspring.

This lesson explores examples of variation that can and cannot be passed on from parents to their offspring, and links this to their causes.

Variation - Variation is the term for differences between individuals of the same species.
Environmental variation - Differences between individuals that are caused by the environment are known as environmental variation.
Genetic variation - Differences between individuals that are caused by the genetic material they inherit are known as genetic variation.
Offspring - The offspring of a living organism are the young produced following reproduction.
Heritable - Heritable traits are features that can be passed on from a parent to their offspring via instructions stored in genetic material (DNA).