chapter 16.vocab

Question 1

evolution

Answer 1

change in living things over time

Question 2

fossil

Answer 2

the preserved remains or traces of ancient organisms

Question 3

adaptation

Answer 3

any heritable characteristics that increase an organisms ability to survive and reproduce in its environment

Question 4

fitness

Answer 4

the ability of an animal to survive and reproduce in its specific environment

Question 5

natural selection

Answer 5

the process by which organisms In nature with variations most suited to their local environment survive and leave more offsprings

Question 6

homologous structures

Answer 6

similar structures that are shared by related species and have been inherited from a common ancestor

Question 7

analogous structures

Answer 7

body parts of organisms that share common functions but not common structures

Question 8

vestigial structures

Answer 8

inherited from ancestors but have lost much of their original size and function