A scientist shines low levels of ultraviolet radiation on a dish containing colonies of ruby-red bacteria. He then makes several replicate plates from this dish over many generations. He finds that in addition to the ruby-red color, there are also pink, orange, and yellow bacteria.

Which of the following is the best explanation for these findings?
A.
Natural selection produced the changes in the bacterial color.
B.
One bacterial colony changed its color to better blend in to the media.
C.
Mutations occurred in the gene for color and were passed on to successive generations of bacteria.
D.
The scientist selected new types of bacteria by making plates of successive generations over time.