Read the following passage from the biology department at university of california, berkeley. northern elephant seals have reduced genetic variation because hunting by humans reduced their population size to as few as 20 individuals at the end of the 19th century. their population has since rebounded to over 30,000, but their genes still carry the marks of this near extinction: they have much less genetic variation than a population of southern elephant seals that was not hunted as intensely. which of the following best describes how the population has evolved?