Name _________________________________

Date: __________ Period: ______

Marshmalien Lab
C.P. Biology
Introduction: In this lab you will discover the link between meiosis and inheritance. You will
be working with an organism called a marshmalien. Chromosomal analysis has revealed that
marshmaliens have eight homologous pairs, or 16 total chromosomes. You will be given two
complete sets of genetic information for the mom and dad marshmaliens. You will demonstrate
Mendels law of independent assortment as you randomly choose eight alleles which appear in
the gamete (haploid) you will contribute to the offspring. Once you and your partner combined
genetic information from two gametes (fertilization), you will analyze the genotypes and
phenotypes for the zygote. Finally you will use this information to build and draw your
resulting marshmalien baby.
Purpose: To explore genetic variation in species by constructing baby marshmaliens.
Safety
Do not eat the lab materials (large marshmallows)
Do not throw materials on the floor, across the room, or at anyone (anything found on the
floor will result in deduction of 5 points from the lab)
Be careful with the scissors
Be careful with the tacks
Marshmalien
Materials
Large marshmallows
Straws
Toothpicks
Googley eyes or push pins
Scissors
Colored thumbtacks
Feathers
Pipe cleaners
Ruler

Hypothesis:
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________

Prelab Questions:
1. The genes that codes for the trait: Eye Spacing (Use the letter E, e) comes in two
different forms or alleles: _____ or _____
2. In genetics, we use letters as symbols to identify alleles:
If E=_______________________ and e=__________________________
3. An individual marshmalien can carry on of three possible combinations of the
alleles: _______________ _________________ __________________
4. Observe the marshmalien parents at the front of the room. Describe the phenotype
(the form we see) of each trait in the table below:
Trait

Phenotype (physical appearance)

Mother

1.

Father

Body Segments:

2. Eye Spacing
3. Length of Legs:
4. Nose Color:
5. Tail Color:
6. Length of Antennae:
7. Antennae Shape:
8. Sex:
9. Wings:

5. Describe the similarities and differences between the phenotypes of the parent
marshmaliens._______________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________
6. At this point in the study, do you know the genotypes of the marshmalien parents?
Yes or No? _______________

Procedures:
1. Get the two envelopes that contain the chromosomes from each of the marshmalien
parents.
1. There are 16 pink chromosomes in the mothers envelope and 16 green
chromosomes in the fathers envelope.
2. Lay the chromosomes out on the table in separate groups, pink and green.
3. Flip them over so the letters do not show.
2. Group the mothers chromosomes into homologous pairs: (Note: One lab partner can be
working with the mothers chromosomes while the other works with the fathers
chromosomes.)
1. Notice that the chromosomes come in different lengths.
2. Can you find two chromosomes that are the same length? You should be able to
find 8 pairs of similarly sized chromosomes. These pairs are homologous
chromosomes.
3. Place all the homologous pairs (same length) together. Line them up from longest
to shortest.
3. Group the fathers chromosomes into homologous pairs:
1. Notice that the fathers chromosomes come in different lengths just like the
mothers chromosomes.
2. Place the fathers chromosomes into homologous pairs.
3. Make sure you have 8 pairs of homologous chromosomes.
4. Selecting Mothers Chromosomes
1. Select one chromosome from each of the mother marshmaliens homologous
pairs. Your selection should be random as it represents independent assortment of
the chromosomes (It doesnt matter which of the two chromosomes you take).
2. You should end up with 8 chromosomes that are each different in length. Please
the remaining chromosomes back into the envelope.
5. Selecting Fathers Chromosomes
1. Select one chromosome from each of the fathers homologous pairs.
2. Again, it doesnt matter which of the two chromosomes you take. Independent
assortment ensures genetic variability in the offspring.
3. Place the remainder of the chromosomes back into the envelope.
6. Mix the chromosomes from the egg and sperm (Mom and Dad).
1. Mix the pile of pink and green chromosomes. You should have a total of 16
chromosomes.
CONGRATULATIONS! You have successfully bred a baby marshmalien.
7. Discover the new traits of your baby marshmalien:
1. Arrange the chromosomes of the baby marshmalien into homologous pairs (same
size). Note that one will be pink and the other green (one from the mother and the
other from the father).

2. Flip the chromosomes over to show the letters. The letters represent the allele
combinations for genes on each chromosome. Uppercase=dominant trait;
lowercase=recessive.
3. Use the table of possible phenotypes. Place an X in the first column of the
table, next to the phenotype of your baby marshmalien. Note that one of the
chromosome pairs has two different allele combinations. The T and R
alleles both contribute toward coding for the same trait, so record all four alleles
together (ex. TTRr).
8. Build your baby marshmalien.
1. Use the directions to build your baby. Supplies are available in the front of the
room.
2. Your marshmalien baby must be EXACTLY as the genotype indicates. No
mutations allowed!
3. Breeders must be on their best behavior. Anyone caught eating, throwing or
otherwise mishandling the supplies will have their baby eliminated from the
breeding program.
9. Once you have successfully created your marshmalien baby, please draw it in the space
provided (or in your composition notebook).
10. Label all of the parts its alleles code for.
11. Give the marshmalien a name.

DATA:

TABLE OF MARSHMALIEN GENOTYPES AND PHENOTYPES

Genotype of your
GENOTYPE: (Allele
PHENOTYPE:
DIRECTIONS FOR
baby (Make an X in combination)
(Observed trait)
BUILDING YOUR
the correct box)
MARSHMALIEN
Use large marshmallows as segments
AA
3 body segments
and connect them with 2 long
Aa
3 body segments
toothpicks. Attach a head using one
marshmallow and 2 toothpicks.
aa
2 body segments
Use 2 googly eyes and glue them
EE
Eyes placed on either
onto the head.
side of the head
Ee
Eyes set apart
ee
Eyes touching
Cut one straw into 4 equal pieces for
DD
4 long legs
the long legs.
Dd
4 long legs
Cut of a straw into 4 equal pieces
for the short legs.
dd
4 short legs
Use one colored thumbtack.
HH
Blue nose
BE CAREFUL!
Hh
Green nose
hh
Red nose
Y Y
Use feathers and cut them to the
C C
2 yellow tail feathers
same length as in the parents.
Y G
C C
1 yellow feather and 1
green feather
CGCG
2 green tail feathers
Antennae are 5 cm long for each
TTRR
20 cm long antennae
dominant allele (T or R) and 1 cm
TtRR
16 cm
long for each recessive allele (t or r).
ttRR
12 cm
Use a metric ruler to measure the
pipe cleaner and cut the correct
TTRr
16 cm
length.
TtRr
12 cm
Insert pipe cleaners into the head of
ttRr
8 cm
the marshmalien.
TTrr
12 cm
Ttrr
8 cm
ttrr
4 cm
the ends of the pipe cleaner by
LL
Antennae with twisted Twist
wrapping them around your finger or
ends
a pencil.
Ll
Antennae with twisted
ends
ll
Antennae with straight
ends
F F
Females have pink bows.
XX
Female, no wings

XFXf
XfXf
XFY
XfY

Female, no wings
Female, wings
Male, no wings
Male, wings

Data continued:
______________________________
Name of Marshmalien

Results:
Baby Marshmalien Characteristics
Trait
Body Segments
Eye Spacing
Length of Legs
Nose Color
Tail Color
Antennae Length

Genotype

Phenotype

Males have blue ties.

Use white feathers as wings.

Antennae Shape
Sex
Wings
Questions:
1. Was your baby marshmalien identical to his or her parents? In what ways did they differ?
How were they the same? Given what you know about sexual reproduction, would you have
expected your baby to be identical to its parents? Explain. ______________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
2. How did you decide which chromosomes to take from the father or mother marshmalien and
give to the baby?________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
Use the Table of Marshmalien Genotypes and Phenotypes to answer the following
questions:
3. What of the marshmalien traits displays the same phenotype (what we see) in both the
homozygous dominant and heterozygous state? (circle all that apply)
a) antennae shape b) eye spacing

c) body segments

d) length of legs

e) nose color

4. Which of the traits is probably a form of incomplete dominance (the heterozygous condition
is midway between the dominant and recessive conditions)? (circle all that apply)
a) nose color

b) body segments

c) sex

d) eye spacing

e) antennae shape

5. Codominant alleles are seen together in the heterozygous state because neither is dominant
over the other. Which of the marshmalien traits is probably represented by codiminant alleles?
(circle all that apply)
a) nose color

b) eye spacing

c)tail color

d) antennae shape

e) sex

6. A trait controlled by more than one gene pair is called a polygenic trait. Traits coded for by
multiple genes show a wide range of variability within a species. Hair and eye color of humans
are examples of polygenic traits. Which trait in marshmaliens is polygenic? ________________
_____________________________________________________________________________
7. In sex-linked traits, the alleles are only present on the X or Y chromosome. In
marshmaliens, which trait is carried on the X chromosome? _____________________________
8. We only looked at nine different marshmalien traits. Can you name another trait, not on the
chart, that is probably homozygous dominant in both parents? ____________________________
______________________________________________________________________________

9. Observe the different types of marshmaliens in the classroom. Is there an evolutionary

advantage to having so many different kinds of traits? Explain
______________________________________________________________________________
10. Baby marshmaliens that have 3 body segments are easier for hunters to see. If the baby
marshmaliens live in a area where there is hunting, what size of marshmaliens do you think will
be most common when the babies grow large enough to reproduce? _______________________
11. Winged marshmaliens can escape from predators easier than non-winged marshmaliens.
Given this fact, and the information you discovered in question 11, what will future
marshmaliens evolve to look like? __________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
12. In marshmaliens, 3 body segments is a dominant form for the trait. Draw a Punnett square
to show a cross between heterozygous parents (Aa x Aa).

Genotypes: _______________________
Ratio: ______________________
Phenotypes:_______________________
Ratio: _____________________
Conclusion:

EXTRA CREDIT:
Determine the genotype and phenotype ratios for the following dihybrid cross. (Use the
Trait Key to determine what the symbols represent).
Show your work by completing the Punnett square- 16 BOXES.
Label the results showing the probability ratios of BOTH genotypes and phenotypes
AaLl x AaLl