science Flashcards
a distinguishing characteristic of an organism
trait
the passing of traits from a generation to generation
inheritance
a section of DNA on a chromosome that has a genetic information for one trait
gene
an organism complete a set of genes
genotype
how a trait appears or is expressed
phenotype
a permanent change in the sequence of DNA, or the nucleotides, in a gene or a chromosome
mutation
a slight difference in a inherited trait among individual members of a species
variation
an inherited trait that increases an organisms chance of surviving and reproducing in a particular enviroment
adaptation
the process by which organisms with variations that help them survive in their environment longer, compete better, and reproduce more than those that don’t have the variation
natural selection
the selection and breeding organisms or desired traits
selective breeding
an adaptation that enables a species to blend in with its environment
camouflage
an adaptation in which one species looks like another species
mimicry
