Are female carriers of sex-linked traits more or less common in the population compared to those expressing the trait?

Female carriers of sex-linked traits are indeed more common in the population compared to those expressing the trait. This can be understood through the genetics of sex-linked inheritance, particularly for genes located on the X chromosome.

In a female (XX), both X chromosomes need to carry the allele for a recessive sex-linked trait for her to express the trait phenotypically. If only one of the X chromosomes carries the recessive allele, she will be a carrier but will not express the trait herself, as the presence of a normal allele on the other X chromosome will mask the effect of the recessive allele.

Since females have two X chromosomes, there is a greater opportunity for them to inherit one normal allele and one mutated allele, leading to a higher frequency of carriers in the population. This contrasts with males, who have one X and one Y chromosome (XY). Males will express the trait if their single X chromosome carries the recessive allele since they do not have a second X chromosome to provide a normal allele.

This genetic mechanism results in a population where female carriers outnumber females expressing the traits since many females can carry one copy of the allele without showing any symptoms. Therefore, the presence of carriers is significantly more prevalent than that of individuals who express