| Term | Definition |
| Evolution (microevolution) | Genetic change in a population or species over generations; all the changes that transform life on earth |
| the voyage of the beagle | a book written by Charles Darwin about evolution |
| gene pool | All the genes in a population at any one time |
| natural variation | the selection of genetic variations by how they effect the organism's chances of survival or reproduction |
| fitness | The contribution an individual makes to the gene pool of the next generation relative to the contribution of other individuals in the population |
| survival of the fittest | Natural selection conceived of as a struggle for life in which only those organisms best adapted to existing conditions are able to survive and reproduce. |
| adaptation | inherited characteristic that enhances an organism's ability to survive and reproduce in a particular environment |
| hardy-weinberg equilibrium | the principle that the shuffling of genes that occurs during sexual reproduction, by itself, cannot change the overall genetic makeup of a population |
| selection pressures | Those factors that influence the direction of natural selection |
| directional selection | Natural selection that acts in favor of the individuals at one end of a phenotypic ratio |
| natural selection | Differential success in reproduction by different phenotypes resulting from interactions with the environment |
| descent with modification | what we define evolution as |
| stabilizing selection | Natural selection that favors intermediate variants by acting against extreme phenotypes |
| gene flow | The gain or loss of alleles from a population by the movement of individuals or gametes into or out of a population |
| genetic drift | A change in the gene pool of a population due to chance |
| bottleneck effect | genetic drift resulting fro a drastic reduction in population size |
| founder effect | Random change in the gene pool that occurs in a small colony of a population |