Classification and Evolution Flashcards
What is phylogeny
The study of evolutionary relationships between organisms
What is evolutionary distance
How recentness of the common ancestor
What are the five kingdoms
Prokaryote
Protoctista
Fungi
Plantae
Animalia
What are the features of pokayotes
No nucleus
No membrane bound organelle
DNA in plasmin and nucleoids
Features of Protoctista
Many are motile
no cell wall
can be aquatic
Features of fungi
Eukaryotic
chitin cell walls
saprotrophic and heterotrophic
Have hyphae
Non vascular
Features of Plantae
Meristematic growth
eukaryotic
cellulose cell walls
most are autotrophic
contain chloroplasts
Features of Animalia
No cell walls
heterotrophic
zygote develops into blastula
have nervous system
have vascular system
What are the 8 taxonomic classifications in order
Domain, Kingdom, Phylum, Class, Order, Family, Genus, Species
What is the Binomial naming system
The act of calling species by their Genus and species
eg. Canis Lupus
Who came up with the Binomial naming system
Carl Linnaeus
What is a species
the smallest group sharing a common ancestor that can breed to produce fertile + viable offspring
Why is the binomial naming system used
Avoids conflicts between languages
Transcends language barriers
Why was the 3 domain system introduced
3 domains fit the phylogeny better
Allows eukaryotes, prokaryotes and archaea to be seperated by key differences
What Bio molecules are used as evidence for classification
Cytochrome C
DNA sequences
Haemoglobin
RNA sequences
What are the two types of Variation
Interspecific - between diff species
Intraspecific - between same species
What is continuous variation
2 extremes
Quantitative data
Most individuals are close to the mead
Influenced by environment
What is standard variation
Spread of data about the mean
What is discontinuous variation
2+ distinct categories
controlled by genetics only
Qualitative
Controlled by a few genes
What are the two causes of variation
Genetic factors
Environmental factors
What does it mean when Standard deviation bars overlap
No significant difference between the data
What is an adaptation
A feature or variation that increases survival or reproductive rate
What are the three types of adaptations
Anatomical
Physiological
Behavioural
What is convergent evolution
When 2 distantly related species adapt in similar ways to fill a similar niche. And so they have similar features
What were Darwin’s conclusion
There is a struggle for survival
Better adapted individuals survive and pass their characteristics on
Over time a number of changes may give rise to a new species
What is the sequence of events leading to natural selection
Genetic variation within population due to DNA mutation
Selection pressure creates competition for survival
Individuals with favourable alleles are better adapted, they then survive and produce more offspring
Alleles are passed on to offspring
This is repeated over many gens until favourable allele becomes more common
What are some selection pressures
Antibiotics
Pesticides
Availability of food
Predators
Diseases
Physical/chemical factors
Who came up with the theory of natural selection
Darwin and Wallace
What evidence do fossils show for evolution
Show changes in species over time (variation in species, species arising and dying out)
What is the problem with fossils
Fossil evidence is incomplete as only produced under specific conditions
Only hard bits are fossilised
Very easily destroyed
difficult to find
What other evidence is used for evolution
Differences in DNA/RNA
Molecular evidence (cytochrome c, amino acids, haemoglobin)
current evolution
