Evolution Flashcards
What is evolution?
Evolution is heritable change in one or more characteristics of a
population or species from one generation to the next
what is microevolution?
changes in a single gene in a population over time
what is macroevolution?
formation of new species or groups of species
what are species?
group of related organisms that share a distinctive form
what is a population?
members of the same species that are likely to encounter each other and thus have the opportunity to interbreed.
who was the first person to carry out a thorough study of the natural world?
John Ray
who said life forms change over time?
George Buffon
who proposed the inheritance of acquired characteristics?
Jean-Baptiste Lamarck
what is the uniformitarianism hypothesis from geology?
slow geological processes lead to substantial change and earth was much older than 6000 years
who said that only a fraction of any population will survive and reproduce?
Thomas Malthus
who is the father of evolution
Charles Darwin (born in 1809)
who sent Darwin an unpublished manuscript proposing many of the same ideas?
Alfred Wallace
what did natural selection consist of?
more offspring produced that can survive, competition for limited resources, individual with better traits flourish and reproduce.
types of evidence of biological evolution?
studies of natural selection, selective breeding, biogeography, convergent evolution, fossil record, homologies, anatomical, molecular
what is convergent evolution?
Two different species from different lineages sometimes become anatomically similar because they occupy similar
environments.
what are homologous structures?
structures that are anatomically similar to each other because they evolved from a structure in a common ancestor.
what is selective breeding?
programs and procedures designed to modify traits in domesticated species. also called artificial selection.
what is biogeography?
study of the biogeographical distribution of extinct and modern species.
what is endemic?
naturally found only in a particular location
what did island fox evolve from?
mainland gray fox
what is another definition of biogeography?
evolution of major animal groups correlated with known changes in the distribution of land masses on the earth.
what is transitional form?
provides link between earlier and later form
what is homology and what are the types?
Homology is the fundamental similarity due to descent from a common ancestor. It may be anatomical (same set of bones in the limbs of modern vertebrates has undergone evolutionary change for many different purposes), developmental (species that differ as adults often bear striking similarities during embryonic stages) or molecular (similarities in cells at the molecular level show that living species evolved from a common ancestor).
what are vestigial structures?
anatomical structures that have no apparent function but resemble structures of presumed ancestors
what are homologous genes?
two genes derived from the same ancestral gene
what are paralogs?
homologous genes within a single species
what is a gene family?
two or more paralogs within the genome of a single organism
what is horizontal gene transfer?
exchange of genetic material among different species
what does evolution at the genomic level involve?
Involves changes in chromosome structure and number
