Darwin & The Galapagos Finches
Why did the finches on each island have very different beak shapes and sizes?
They evolved from a common ancestor and adapted to their local food sources. Individuals with the most beneficial characteristics survived and reproduced the most, so those characteristics become more common in the population.
Reproduction involving two parents and fusion of gametes:
Sexual Reproduction
This term refers to the heritable characteristics that increase an organism’s chances of survival and reproduction:
Adaptations
What is the smallest unit of life and most basic building block of organisms?
Cells
Observable traits or physical appearance of an organism:
Phenotype
The mechanism Darwin proposed that explains which individuals survive and reproduce:
Natural Selection
"Survival of the fittest"
Reproduction involving only one parent and resulting in an identical offspring.
Asexual Reproduction
Evidence from layers of preserved organisms that shows changes over time:
Fossil Record
Group of similar cells working together to perform a function:
Tissues
Darwin sailed as a naturalist and collector of specimens from 1831–1836 aboard a vessel. What was the name of the boat?
HMS Beagle
Define heredity:
The passing of traits from parents to offspring through genes; to inherit means an offspring receives those genetic traits.
What is one major disadvantage of sexual reproduction?
Requires finding a mate, requires more energy, requires more time, slower population growth
What does it mean for a species to be extinct?
The whole species has died and there are no remaining individuals in the wild.
Structure made of different tissues working together for a job (e.g., heart)
Organ
A close relationship between two different species where both benefit.
Birds migrating south for the winter is an example of what kind of adaptation?
Behavioral adaptation
What is one major advantage of sexual reproduction?
Increased genetic diversity; Enhances adaptability, resistance to harmful mutations
The molecule that stores genetic information in all living organisms.
DNA
A living individual able to carry out life processes.
An organism
What are the potential outcomes of a mutation?
Harmful effects, beneficial effects, or no effects
The variety of different species in a given area.
Biodiversity
What is a major disadvantage of asexual reproduction?
Low genetic diversity, poor adaptability, risk of mutations is great
The supercontinent that existed about 300 million years ago. When this landmass broke up, species became widely distributed, furthering evolution.
Pangaea
Group of organisms that can interbreed and produce fertile offspring.
Species
Give one piece of evidence that explains how land and ocean mammals descended from a common ancestor:
Fossil record, skeletal anatomy, DNA sequence, mammal characteristics, embryo development