Evolution Flashcards
Ecosystem
A system that includes all living organisms (biotic factors) in an area as well as its physical environment (abiotic factors) functioning together as a unit
Evolutionary adaptations
The process that species go through order to become accustomed to an environment
Charles Darwin
English naturalist Charles Darwin (1809-1882). His theory of evolution by natural selection, now the unifying theory of the life sciences, explained where all of the astonishingly diverse kinds of living things came from and how they became exquisitely adapted to their particular environments.
Adaptation
Any alteration in the structure or function of an organism or any of its parts that results from natural selection and by which the organism becomes better fitted to survive and multiply in its environment. A form or structure modified to fit a changed environment.
Evolution
the change in the characteristics of a species over several generations and relies on the process of natural selection
Fossils
Any preserved evidence of life from a past geological age, such as the impressions and remains of organisms embedded in stratified rocks.
Population
A group of organisms of one species that interbreed and live in the same place at the same time
Cladogram
A branching treelike diagram used to illustrate evolutionary (phylogenetic) relationships among organisms.
Individual
being a single entity that cannot be divided.
Biodiveristy
The variety and variability of life on Earth. Biodiversity is typically a measure of variation at the genetic, species, and ecosystem level.
Community
An interacting group of various species in a common location.
Vestigial Structures
various cells, tissues, and organs in a body which no longer serve a function. A vestigial structure can arise due to a mutation in the genome. This mutation will cause a change in the proteins that are required for the formation of the structure. Although the structure no longer functions, the prevalence of the vestigial structure may increase in the population if it is advantageous. In cave-dwelling fish, for example, the development and upkeep of eyes are an unnecessary energetic expense when there is no light. Therefore, vestigial eyes may be selected for over functioning eyes.
Biological Fitness
The ability to survive to reproductive age, find a mate, and produce offspring
Natural Selection
A process in nature in which organisms possessing certain genotypic characteristics that make them better adjusted to an environment tend to survive, reproduce, increase in number or frequency, and therefore, are able to transmit and perpetuate their essential genotypic qualities to succeeding generations
Analogous Structures
are similar structures that evolved independently in two living organisms to serve the same purpose.
