In the 1800s, the small population of the island of Martha's Vineyard included many people who were congenitally deaf. Everyone there spoke sign language because so many people had deaf neighbors or relatives. They could trace this trait back to a few of the original settlers on the island, who were deaf and in the same family. What is the most likely explanation, in evolutionary terms, why so many people on the island were deaf?
A. One of the few founders of the population carried the allele for deafness.
B. There was a mutation causing the gene for deafness.
C. Gene flow onto the island continually brought in genes for deafness from the mainland.
D. The foghorns on the island provided a selective advantage to being deaf.
A. One of the few founders of the population carried the allele for deafness.
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