Chapter 14 Flashcards
adaptation
an inherited characteristic that improves an organisms ability to survive and reproduce in a particular environment
Beagle
Charles Darwin sailed around the world on this ship in the 1830s
Decency with Modification
species living on Earth today descended from earlier species
Natural selection
the process by which individuals with inherited characteristics well-suited to the environment leave more offspring on average than do other individuals
fossils
are preserved remains or markings left by organisms that lived in the past
fossil record
the collection of fossils recorded in rock layers over time
extinct species
species that no longer exist (help scientists reconstruct the past)
homologous structures
similar structures among related species
vestigial structures
homologous structures that have a major function in one species but not in a related species
population
a group of individuals of the same species living in the same area at the same time
variation
differences among members of the same species
artificial selection
which is selective breeding of plants and animals to produce offspring with traits that humans value
gene pool
consists of all the alleles, or different forms of genes, in all the individuals in a population
microevolution
a generation-to-generation change in the frequencies of alleles within a population
Hardy-Weinberg Equilibrium
populations that do not undergo change to their gene pools are not presently evolving
