Evolution

Question 1

Evolution

Answer 1

Change in the genetic composition of a population during successive generations as a result of natural selection acting on the genetic variation among individuals and resulting in the development of new species

Question 2

phylogenetic tree

Answer 2

a branching diagram used to model evolution and describe the evolutionary relationship between species

Question 3

speciation

Answer 3

formation of new species through evolution

Question 4

species

Answer 4

a group of organisms that are capable of breeding with one another and are incapable of breeding with other species

Question 5

evolutionary fitness

Answer 5

the better-adaptedness of individual organisms to their environment that allows them to live and reproduce, ensuring that their genes are apart of their populations next generation

Question 6

natural selection

Answer 6

According to Darwin’s theory on evolution
Only the organisms best adapted to their environment tend to survive and transmit their genetic characteristics in increasing numbers to succeeding generations, while those less adapted tend to be eliminated

Question 7

selective pressure

Answer 7

any cause that reduces reproductive success (fitness) in a portion of the population
this is what drives evolution

Question 8

gene pool

Answer 8

the total genetic makeup of a population

Question 9

genetic drift

Answer 9

the random fluctuations in the frequency of the appearance of a gene in a small isolated population, presumably owing to chance, rather than natural selection

Question 10

microevolution

Answer 10

small-scale evolutionary changes over relatively short periods of time

Question 11

macroevolution

Answer 11

large-scale patterns of evolution within biological organisms over long periods of time

Question 12

extinction

Answer 12

the death of an entire species; permeant inactivity

Question 13

biological extinction

Answer 13

true extermination of a species; no individuals of this species are left on the planet

Question 14

ecological extinction

Answer 14

the condition in which there are so few individuals of a species that the species can no longer perform its ecological function

Question 15

commercial/economic extinction

Answer 15

a few individuals exist but the effort needed to locate and harvest them is not worth the expense

Question 16

population

Answer 16

a group of organisms of the same species that live in the same area

Question 17

community

Answer 17

formed from populations of different species occupying the same geographic area

Question 18

niche

Answer 18

the total sum of a species use of biotic and abiotic resources in it’s enviornmet

Question 19

habitat

Answer 19

the area or environment where an organism or ecological community normally lives or occurs

Question 20

specialist

Answer 20

a species that has a narrow niche and can only live in a certain habitat

Question 21

generalist

Answer 21

a species that has a broad niche, is highly adaptable, and can live in varied habitats

Question 22

competition

Answer 22

the relationship that exists when two individuals - of the same species or of different species - compete for resources in the same environmet

Question 23

intrapspecific competition

Answer 23

competition between individuals of the same species

Question 24

interspecific competition

Answer 24

competition between individuals of different species

Question 25

Gause’s principle

Answer 25

states that no two species can occupy the same niche at the same time, and that the species that is less fit to live in the environment will either relocate die out, or occupy another niche

Question 26

realized niche

Answer 26

the compromised niche a species occupies- smaller than the niche it would occupy in the absence of competition

Question 27

fundamental niche

Answer 27

the niche a species would have if there were no competition

Question 28

resource partitioning

Answer 28

when different species rely on the resource but use slightly different parts of the resource to avoid direct competition

Question 29

predation

Answer 29

when one species feeds on another

Question 30

predator

Answer 30

a species that feeds on another species

Question 31

prey

Answer 31

a species that’s subject to predation by another species

Question 32

symbiotic relationship

Answer 32

close, prolonged associations between two or more different organisms of different species that may, but do not necessarily, benefit the other members

Question 33

mutualism

Answer 33

a symbiotic relationship in which both species benefit

Question 34

commensalism

Answer 34

symbiotic relationship in which one organism benefits while the other is neither helped nor hurt

Question 35

parasitism

Answer 35

a symbiotic relationship in which one member is helped by the association and the other is harmed