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AP Biology > Unit 7: Natural Selection > Flashcards

Unit 7: Natural Selection Flashcards

1
Q

natural selection

A

process by which organisms with traits better suited to the environment survive and reproduce more often

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2
Q

evolution

A

change in the gene pool

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3
Q

evolutionary fitness

A

measure of an organism’s ability to survive and reproduce

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4
Q

selective pressure

A

process by which organisms either live or die based on their traits

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5
Q

niche

A

organism’s role in an ecosystem

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6
Q

mutation

A

change in the nucleotide sequence of an organism

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7
Q

population

A

a group of same-species individuals located in the same area

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8
Q

speciation

A

formation of new species from one

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9
Q

genetic drift

A

change in allele frequences due to random chance event

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10
Q

bottleneck effect

A

change in allele frequencies due to clamactic event

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11
Q

founder effect

A

loss in genetic variation due small part of original population migrating

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12
Q

hardy-weinburg equilibrium

A

states that allele and genotype frequencies will remain constant in a population if there are no evolutionary forces acting on it

p^2 + 2pq + q^2 = 1
p + q = 1

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13
Q

nonrandom mating

A

sexual selection; female chooses mate

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14
Q

fossil

A

remains of a prehistoric organism captured in rock

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15
Q

vestigial structure

A

structures that we have that were once used by our ancestors but not used anynore

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16
Q

morphology

A

study of body structures and placements

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17
Q

phylogeny

A

evolutionary history of a kind of organism

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18
Q

phylogenetic tree

A

shows evolutionary relationships between organisms over time

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19
Q

cladogram

A

only shows the evolutionary relationships between organisms not with regard to time

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20
Q

outgroup

A

species that shares barely or not at all any similarities with the rest

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21
Q

lineage

A

descent from a common ancestor

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22
Q

reproductive isolation

A

barriers that prevent two species from reproducing

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23
Q

allopatric

A

different places

24
Q

sympatric

A

same place

25
adaptive radiation
the exploitation of new niches by many organisms
26
extinction
total elimination of a species
27
convergent evolution
similar characteristics evolved in species without a recent common ancestor
28
divergent evolution
similar characteristics due to a recent common ancestor
29
species diversity
variety and abundance of species in a population
30
ecosystem
a region as well as all the organisms and abiotic factors present in it
31
RNA world hypothesis
idea that before cells, DNA, and the central dogma, RNA could form naturally and function like proteins
32
molecular clock
technique in which the rate at which mutations occur is used to figure out when speciation first occurred
33
What causes natural selection?
Overproduction Variation Selective pressure
34
How does natural selection affect populations?
Natural selection applies selective pressure on populations based on traits that better suit the environment and increase reproductive fitness
35
What is the importance of phenotypic variation in a population?
the more variation in a species, the less susceptible it as a whole is to disease, increasing reproductive fitness
36
How can humans affect diversity within a population?
Via artificial selection, humans can choose the traits they want in a population over generations
37
How do random occurrences affect the genetic makeup of a population?
genetic drift (random occurrences) leads to change in (may increase or decrease) allele frequencies of a population
38
What is the role of random processes in the evolution of specific populations?
random processes like genetic drift lead to changes in allele frequencies which over time is evolution
39
What is the change in the genetic makeup of a population over time called?
evolution
40
What are the conditions under which allele and genotype frequencies will change in populations?
1. small population sizes 2. gene flow 3. mutations 4. nonrandom mating 5. natural selection
41
What will happen to the population if any of the conditions of Hardy- Weinberg are not met?
the population will evolve
42
What types of data provide evidence for evolution?
Biogeography (distribution of species in different environment) Fossils Homologies (similar morphological structure) DNA and proteins Mathematical models (Hardy-Weinburg)
43
How do morphological, biochemical, and geological data provide evidence that organisms have changed over time?
Morphological: organisms with homologous structures indicate a recent common ancestor implying that speciation has occurred. Biochemical: mutations cause changes to the gene pool which is evolution Geological: similar organisms changed due to being in different geographies (environments)
44
What are the fundamental molecular and cellular features shared across all domains of life, which provide evidence of common ancestry?
The last universal common ancestor of all life had: | DNA, RNA, Proteins, ATP, lipid membrane, cell division
45
What structural and functional evidence on cellular and molecular levels provides evidence for the common ancestry of all eukaryotes?
Membrane-bound organelles | Linear chromosomes
46
How is evolution an ongoing process in all living organisms?
organism populations generally have genetic variation that natural selection can act on, which drives evolution.
47
How can a phylogenetic tree and/or cladogram be used to infer evolutionary relatedness?
All organisms in the cladogram/phylogenetic tree are related via the recent common ancestor Two species can be more closely related than others depending on how relatively recent speciation that created them occurred
48
What are the conditions under which new species may arise?
reproductive isolation
49
How does the rate of evolution and speciation differ under different ecological conditions?
Extinction can open up new ecological niches which can be rapidly exploited by organisms, leading to rapid evolution and speciation.
50
What are the processes and mechanisms that drive speciation and evolution?
Natural selection Genetic drift Gene flow Non random mating
51
What factors can lead to the extinction of a population?
``` Abiotic factors (climate, asteroids, and comets, etc) Biotic factors (humans, hunting, low fitness, etc) ```
52
How can the risk for extinction increase due to changes in the environment?
Changes in the environment affect the ecological niches of organisms, which can lead to extinction if they can't adjust to a new one.
53
How can species diversity in an ecosystem change from speciation and extinction?
Speciation increases species diversity while extinction decreases species diversity
54
How can extinction make new environments available for adaptive radiation?
Extinction clears up ecological niches that can be exploited by other organisms that survived the extinction event
55
How does the genetic diversity of a species or population affect its ability to withstand environmental pressures?
The more diverse a species is the greater its ability as a whole to withstand environmental pressures.

AP Biology (8 decks)

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