Population differences in red and green color vision deficiency: A review, and a query on selection relaxation

Abstract

Prevalence rates of red and green color deficiencies are tabulated for all the population samples found in the literature as estimated by testing males with the Ishihara color cards. Among the lowest rates are those of the aborigines in Australia, Brazil, Fiji, and North America. The highest rates are of samples in Europe and the Far East, including Brahmins of India. Intermediary rates are of Negroes in Africa and the Americas, other groups in India, and various hybrid groups. All of the lower rates are of populations with simple or primitive cultures until recently, for which it might be assumed that color vision deficiency would be a handicap in life in the unmarked wildlands. All of the higher prevalence rates, except for three based on very small samples, are of populations which have had pastoral‐agricultural economies and settled habitats for at least three millenia. It is assumed that in these habitats a colorblind person of either sex could be as successful in living and procreating as a person of normal color vision. From the above considerations the total frequency of alleles producing the red color vision deficiencies are roughly estimated to have increased from .005 to .02 in European populations during about 120 generations; the green, from .015 to .06. With the assumption that selection at both loci has been completely relaxed during this time, the net mutation rates (discounting reverse mutation) for all deficiency‐producing mutant alleles at each locus are given.