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H. Biology Ch. 15 Vocab

Terms in this set (28)

Artificial Selection
Darwins term for selective breeding: Breeding of organisms selected for certain traits in order to produce offspring with those traits.
Natural Selection
A theory of evolution developed by Darwin, based on four ideas: excess reproduction, variations, inheritance, and the advantages of specific traits in an environment. Acts to select individuals that are best adapted for survival and reproduction.
Evolution
Hereditary changes in groups of living organisms over time.
Analogous structure
A structure that has the same function but different construction and was not inherited from a common ancestor.
Ancestral Trait
More-primitive characteristic that appeared in common ancestors.
Biogeography
The study of the distribution of plants and animals on earth.
Camouflage
Morphological adaptations that allow organisms to blend into their environment.
Derived trait
A new feature that had not appeared in common ancestors.
Embryo
Organism's early prebirth stage of development.
Fitness
A measure of a trait's relative contribution to the following generation.
Homologous structure
Anatomically similar structure inherited from a common ancestor.
Mimicry
Morphological adaptation in which one species evolves to resemble another species for protection or other advantages.
Vestigial structure
Reduced form of a functional structure that indicates shared ancestry.
Adaptive radiation
Can occur in a relatively short time when one species gives rise to many different species in response to the creation of new habitats or some other ecological opportunity. Follows larg-scale extinction events.
Allopatric speciation
A physical barrier divides on population into two or more populations.
Bottleneck
Process in which a large population declines in number, then rebounds.
Founder effect
Random effect that can occur when a small population settles in an area separated from the rest of the population and interbreeds, producing unique allelic variations.
Genetic Drift
A change in the allelic frequencies in a population that is due to chance. In smaller populations, the effects of genetic drift become more pronounced, and the chance of losing an allele becomes greater. (bacteria vs antibiotics)
Gradualism
Rate of Speciation -Theory that evolution occurs in small, gradual steps over time.
Hardy-Weinberg Principle
(Mechanisms of Evolution) - Population genetics -This principle states that when allelic frequencies remain constant, a population is in genetic equilibrium.
Punctuated equilibrium
Theory that evolution occurs with relatively sudden periods of speciation followed by long periods of stability.
Sexual selection
Change in the frequency of a trait based on competition for a mate.
Sympatric speciation
A species evolves into a new species without a physical barrier. The ancestor species and the new species live side by side during the speciation process.
Gene flow
Increases genetic variation within a population and reduces differences between populations
Nonrandom Mating
Promotes inbreeding and could lead to a change in allelic proportions favoring individuals that are homozygous for particular traits.
Coevolution
The relationship between two species might be so close that the evolution of one species affects the evolution of the other species. - Mutualism
Covergent Evolution
Unrelated species evolve similar traits even though they live in different parts of the world
Punctuated equilibrium
Rate of Speciation - explains rapid spurts of genetic change causing species to diverge quickly
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