What is genetic drift?

Genetic drift refers to a random change in allele frequencies within a population over time. This phenomenon often occurs in small populations where chance events can have a more significant impact on the genetic makeup. For instance, if a few individuals carry certain alleles and these individuals reproduce, their traits may become more or less common purely due to random events, rather than because of any selection pressures. This randomness can lead to the loss of genetic diversity and can also cause certain traits to become fixed in the population. Genetic drift is an important concept in the study of evolution and population genetics as it helps explain how populations can diverge genetically over time, even in the absence of natural selection.