Speciation

Question 1

What is speciation?

Answer 1

The development of a new species

Question 2

What is a species?

Answer 2

Is a group similar organisms that can reproduce to give fertile offspring

Question 3

When does speciation occur?

Answer 3

When the population of the same species become so different that they can no longer breed together to produce fertile offspring

Question 4

Define Isolation

Answer 4

Isolation is where populations of a species are separated

Question 5

How can isolation occur?

Answer 5

Due to a physical barrier, eg floods/earthquakes can cause barriers that physically isolate some individuals from the main population

Question 6

Conditions on either side of the physical barrier will be…

Answer 6

Slightly different

Question 7

What does the environment being different on each side of the barrier cause?

Answer 7

Different characteristics will become more common in each population due to natural selection

Question 8

Describe natural selection

Answer 8

1) Each population shows variation because they ave a wide range of alleles
2) In each population, individuals with characteristics that make them better adapted to their environemtn have a better chance of survival and so are more likely to breed successfully
3) So the alleles that control the beneficial characteristics are more likely to be passed on to the next generation

Question 9

What defines when 2 groups become separate species?

Answer 9

Eventually individuals from different populations will have changed so much they won’t be able to breed with one another to produce fertile offspring = separate species