Evolution And Natural Selection Flashcards
(13 cards)
What is Evolution?
The process of change over time. (Specifically a genetic change in a population over time)
Who is Charles Darwin?
He is the Father of Evolution.
Who made up a theory about Natural Selection.
He went on a 5-year trip around the world on a ship.
He was the Ship’s Naturalist - meaning that he did observations.
His book is called: Origin of the Species.
What was the boat that Charles Darwin went on for his trip?
The HMS Beagle.
What is Natural Selection?
Organisms that are best adapted to an environment and are able to survive and reproduce more than others.
Also known as: Survival of the Fittest.
What happened in London during the 1800’s?
Coal Dust started to develop and covering most things around us, which made a very good advantage for the peppered moths because they’re able to blend in the background, but the white moths are more exposed and can be seen easily which made the population of the moths change.
What are the four steps in Natural Selection?
OverProduction
Variation
Competition
Selection
What would OverProduction be based on?
Each species overproduced offspring to better their chances of survival.
So, in other words, they plan for some of their offspring to die.
What would Variation mean?
Each individual has a unique combination of inherited traits. They would be genetically different.
Adaptation: an inherited trait which increases an organism’s chance of survival.
E.g. Birds Beaks. (It was an advantage for the birds because it would develop over time and they’re used to getting that type of material)
“It’s good to be Different!”
Variation is important to organisms, why?
The more variation within a species, the more likely they will survive.
EX: If everyone is the same, they are all vulnerable to the environmental change and the diseases.
The more variation of species in a habitat, the more likely some will survive.
Describe Competition.
Individuals compete for limited resources: Food, Water, Space and Mates.
Fitness: the ability to survive and reproduce.
Not all individuals survive to adulthood.
Describe Selection:
The individuals with the best traits will survive and have the opportunity to pass on its traits to its offspring.
E.g. Lamark’s Giraffe Theory.
There are 3 types of Evolution, what are they?
Convergent Evolution
Divergent Evolution
Coevolution
Why Evolution makes sense:
Individuals with traits that are not well suited to the environment would either die or leave offspring.
Evolution occurs when good traits build up in a population over many generations and bad traits are eliminated by the death of the individuals.
