Evolution & Natural Selection

Question 1

What is the principle of fossil succession?

Answer 1

Fossils in the rock record follow a specific order

Question 2

What is the idea of evolution?

Answer 2

That life changes and adapts to its surroundings over time

Adaptations suit the time and environment

Question 3

Is there a direction or goal for evolution? Yes or no?

Answer 3

No, since animals just change over time to meet the demands of the ever-changing world around them

Question 4

Is there only one solution to a problem in regard to evolution?

Answer 4

For the most part, often yes, there is only one solution to a problem

Question 5

Who was Jean-Baptiste Lamarck? (1744-1829)

Answer 5

He considered that traits acquired in life would be passed down to offspring

He was in fact wrong since acquired traits are not inherited

Question 6

Who was Charles Darwin?

Answer 6

The first to create a comprehensive model for evolution/how animals change

Question 7

What do we call Charles Darwin’s model of evolution?

Answer 7

“Evolution through natural selection” or “Darwinism”

Question 8

What did Darwin find?

Answer 8

The traits that allow you to survive and reproduce will be present in later generations

If you can’t survive, you can’t reproduce

Question 9

Where did Darwin get his idea of natural selection from?

Answer 9

By the artificial selection of animals, since we are able to select and breed them for specific traits

Ex. Dogs since their original ancestors all came from the Wild Gray Wolf

Question 10

What is natural slection?

Answer 10

Animals becoming adapted to their surrounding environment

They will change over time to survive

Ex. ancestors of the WHALE were once land dwellers but changed over time to be built for the deep water

Question 11

What are the 2 major components of natural slection?

Answer 11

1) The creation of variation within a population

2) The selection of favorable characteristics
that allow for survival and the passing of genes

Question 12

What is the most common source of variation?

Answer 12

Genetic Mutations

Question 13

What are genetic mutations? How do they usually occur?

Answer 13

Mistakes that occur in the DNA

Usually occur when there is a copy error during the replication of DNA

Can have significant changes of something over many generations

Question 14

Whats the commonality of most mutations?

Answer 14

NOT NECESSARILY BENEFICIAL, can linger in populations if not deadly

Ex. Heterochromia (Diff Eye colors)

Question 15

What happens to mutations that are immediately deadly or seriously debilitating?

Answer 15

They will disappear quickly since the mutation will cause the host to die

Ex. Sickle Cell Anemia

Question 16

What happens to mutations that help the animal survive?

Answer 16

It will help them pass on its genes and persist in the population

Useful genes will survive through generations

Question 17

What does the “selection” in natural selection mean?

Answer 17

Refers to nature selecting beneficial traits to survive

Question 18

How have Gazelles adapted to survive longer?

Answer 18

They are built to survive from predators

Eyes located on the side of head to see better

Muscles high on the leg for swift motion

Legs in constant starting position for a fast start

Question 19

What happened to pepper moths?

Answer 19

These moths were mostly light-colors but due to the Industrial evolution, ash and soot blackened trees which in turn made the darker colored ones to survive better

Black moths survived better and the lighter moths began to die out

Those who survive pass their useful traits