Natural Selection Flashcards
What is natural selection?
A process where organisms better adapted to their environment tend to survive and produce more offspring.
True or False: Natural selection is the only mechanism of evolution.
False
Fill in the blank: The theory of evolution was primarily developed by _______.
Charles Darwin
What are the four main principles of natural selection?
Variation, inheritance, selection, and time.
Define ‘fitness’ in the context of natural selection.
The ability of an organism to survive and reproduce in its environment.
What is adaptation?
A trait that increases an organism’s fitness in a specific environment.
Fill in the blank: The process by which species evolve over time is known as _______.
evolution
Multiple Choice: Which of the following is an example of natural selection? A) A virus mutating B) A bird’s beak size changing due to food availability C) A plant growing towards sunlight D) All of the above
B) A bird’s beak size changing due to food availability
What is the role of genetic variation in evolution?
It provides the raw material for natural selection to act upon.
What is speciation?
The process by which new species arise.
Fill in the blank: The concept that all living organisms share a common ancestor is known as _______.
common descent
What is a gene pool?
The total collection of genes in a population at any one time.
Multiple Choice: Which of the following is an example of artificial selection? A) Dog breeding B) Natural selection C) Genetic drift D) All of the above
A) Dog breeding
Fill in the blank: The mechanism by which organisms with advantageous traits survive and reproduce is called _______.
natural selection
What does the term ‘fitness’ specifically refer to in evolutionary biology?
The reproductive success of an organism relative to others in the population.
What is the difference between macroevolution and microevolution?
Macroevolution refers to large-scale evolutionary changes, while microevolution refers to small-scale changes within a population.
What are homologous structures?
Structures in different species that are similar due to shared ancestry.
Fill in the blank: The concept that traits can be passed from parents to offspring is known as _______.
inheritance
What is the significance of the Galápagos Islands in the study of evolution?
They were crucial in the development of Darwin’s theory of natural selection due to the diverse species found there.
Explain “descent with modification”
Process by which species change over time
- proposed by Darwin
Define the process of descent with modification on finches
Finches evolved into multiple species with unique characteristics that helped with unique characteristics that helped them survive in specific habitats
Explain Industrial melanism…how does this show natural selection?
Change in moth color with Industrial revolution
- with the tress darkened by soot, the dark colored moths had a survival advantage bc better camouflaged against darker bark. Predators less likely to spot them
