Chapter 14 - Evolution Flashcards
Adaptation?
an inherited characteristic that improves an organism’s ability to survive and reproduce in a particular environment
Evolution?
all the changes that have transformed life over an immense time
______ sailed around the world on the ______.
Charles Darwin ; Beagle
Darwin’s name for the process in which descendants of the earliest organisms accumulated different adaptations as they spread into various habitats over millions of years
descent with modification
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?
preserved remains or markings left by organisms that lived in the past
Fossil Record?
the collection of fossils recorded in rock layers over time.
What evidence helps scientists reconstruct the past?
Fossils of extinct species, or species that no longer exist.
Homologous structures?
similar structures among related species
provide clues about evolution
Vestigial Structures?
homologous structures that have a major function in one species but not in related species
Darwin based his theory of natural selection on ___ sets of observations:
________ and _________
2 ;
the struggle of survival in a population and variation
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
passes from generation to generation
Darwin believed ______ could cause isolated populations of the same species to become separate species as they adapted to their different environments.
natural selection
Artificial Selection?
the selective breeding of plants and animals to produce offspring with traits that humans value
Gene Pool?
consists of all the alleles in the individuals that make up a population.
(frequency refers to how often it occurs in the gene pool)
Microevolution?
a generation-to-generation change in the frequencies of alleles within a population (evolution on small scale)
condition in which populations do not undergo change to their gene pools
Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium
Genetic Drift?
a change in a gene pool due to chance
Gene Flow?
the exchange of genes with another population.
the change in the gene pool due to migration of fertile individuals into or out of a population
Of all causes of microevolution, only _________ usually leads to adaptation. It occurs because of differences in ___________.
natural selection
biological fitness
Fitness?
the contribution that an individual makes to the gene pool of the next generation compared to the contribution of other individuals
3 factors that can change a gene pool without leading to adaptation :
genetic drift,
gene flow,
natural selection
Antibiotics?
drugs that kill or slow the growth of bacteria
Natural Selection explains how bacteria has evolved resistance to ________.
antibiotics
antibiotics kill most of the bacteria, but resistant bacteria multiplies widely in population.
Charles Darwin was inspired by ________ who believed ____________.
Lyell ;
Evolution was a process of adaptation and Earth was much older than first thought.
