Basic Evolution
The process by which organisms with beneficial traits survive and reproduce more.
Natural Selection
An animal that hunts and eats other animals.
Predator
What is a repeating rise and fall in populations called?
A cycle
Differences in traits between individuals of the same species.
Variation
An animal that is hunted and eaten by predators.
Prey
What population usually increases first, prey or predators?
prey
What role do mutations play in evolution?
They create new genetic variation.
Lynx and Hares are an example of what type of evolution
Coevolution
When prey numbers drop, what eventually happens to predators?
They decrease
What is fitness in evolutionary terms?
Answer: An organism’s ability to survive and reproduce.
What term describes predators catching the easiest targets in a population?
Selection
What term describes the maximum population an environment can support?
Carrying Capacity
What is it called when traits become more common over time?
Adaptation
What happens to a prey population’s average fitness over time due to predation?
Increase
What famous animal pair shows population cycles in real data?
Lynx-Hare