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AP Biology: Evolution Flashcards

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7639765147AdaptationInherited characteristics of an organism that enhances its survival and reproduction in a specific environment.0
7639772232AnalogousHaving characteristics that are similar because of convergent evolution, not homology.1
7639790439Artificial SelectionThe selective breeding of animals and plants to encourage the occurrence of desirable traits.2
7639796737BiogeographyThe scientific study of the past and present geographic distributions of species.3
7639807706Continental DriftThe gradual movement and formation of continents.4
7639826346Convergent Evolutionthe process whereby organisms not closely related, independently evolve similar traits as a result of having to adapt to similar environments or ecological niches.5
7639830151Evolutionthe change in genetic composition of a population from generation to generation.6
7639852058EndemicReferring to a species that is confined to a specific geographic area.7
7639857370EutherianMammal whose young complete their embryonic development within the uterus, joined to the mother by the placenta.8
7639879008Homologous StructuresStructures in different species that are similar because of common ancestry.9
7639889514HomologySimilarity in characteristics resulting from a shared ancestry.10
7639894488Natural Selectionthe evolutionary process by which favorable traits that are heritable become more common in successive generations.11
7639922508PaleontologyThe scientific study of fossils.12
7639929749StratumA rock layer formed when new layers of sediment cover older ones and compress them.13
7639941934TraitOne of two or more detectable variants.14
7639948031Vestigial Structureanatomical structures of organisms in a species which have lost much or all of their original function due to evolution.15
7641426667Animaliakingdom of multicellular eukaryotic heterotrophs whose cells do not have cell walls (all animals).16
7641440247ArchaeaOne of two prokaryote domains, the other being Bacteria.17
7641452186Binomial NomenclatureClassification system in which each species is assigned a two-part scientific name.18
7641456516Branch PointThe representation on a phylogenetic tree of the divergence of two.19
7641468567CladeA group of species that includes an ancestral species and all its descendants.20
7641471478CladisticsClassification where organisms are placed into groups called clades, based on common ancestry.21
7641479225EukaryaThe domain that includes all eukaryotic organisms.22
7641484119GenomeThe genetic material of an organism or virus; the complete complement of an organism's or virus's genes along with its noncoding nucleic acid sequences.23
7641503328GenusA taxonomic category above the species level, designated by the first word of a species' two-part scientific name.24
7641530675HomoplasyA similar structure or molecular sequence that has evolved independently in two different species.25
7641539869Horizontal Gene TransferThe transfer of genes from one genome to another through mechanisms such as transposable elements, plasmid exchange, viral activity, and perhaps fusions of different organisms.26
7641552258KingdomA taxonomic category used to classify organisms, the second broadest after domain.27
7641561736Molecular ClockTheoretical clock used to measure evolutionary time, based on the observations that some regions of genomes evolve at constant rates.28
7641573720Molecular SystematicsUses DNA and other molecular data to determine evolutionary relationships.29
7641584083OutgroupA species or group of species that is closely related to the group of species being studied, but clearly not as closely related as any study-group members are to each other.30
7641595388ParaphyleticPertaining to a grouping of species that consists of an ancestral species and some, but not all, of its descendants.31
7641607296Phylogenetic TreeA branching diagram that represents a hypothesis about evolutionary relationships.32
7641614698PhylogenyThe evolutionary history of a species or group of related species.33
7641622888PolyphyleticPertaining to a grouping of species derived from two or more different ancestral forms.34
7641627758Shared Derived CharacterA character that is unique to a particular taxon.35
7641632371Sister TaxaGroups that share an immediate common ancestor and hence are each other's closest relatives.36
7641640085SystematicsThe analytical study of the diversity and relationships of organisms, both present-day and extinct.37
7641645450TaxonomyOrdered division of organisms into categories based on a set of characteristics used to assess similarities and differences, leading to a classification scheme; the branch of biology concerned with naming and classifying the diverse forms of life.38
7641793318AlleleAny alternative version of a gene that may produce distinguishable phenotypic effects.39
7641810922Balancing SelectionNatural selection that maintains two or more phenotypic forms in a population.40
7641815164Bottleneck EffectGenetic drift that occurs when the size of a population is reduced, as by a natural disaster or human actions; typically, the surviving population is no longer genetically representative of the original population.41
7641826050Directional SelectionNatural selection in which individuals at one end of the phenotypic range survive or reproduce more successfully than do other individuals.42
7641831897Disruptive SelectionNatural selection in which individuals on both extremes of a phenotypic range survive or reproduce more successfully than do individuals with intermediate phenotypes.43
7641841093Founder EffectGenetic drift that occurs when a few individuals become isolated from a larger population and form a new population whose gene pool composition is not reflective of that of the original population.44
7641848575Frequency-Dependent SelectionSelection in which the fitness of a phenotype depends on how common the phenotype is in a population.45
7641852337Gene FlowThe transfer of alleles from one population to another, resulting from the movement of fertile individuals or their gametes.46
7641854876Gene PoolCombined genetic information of all the members of a particular population47
7641858458Genetic DriftA change in the gene pool of a population due to chance.48
7641866075GenotypeAn organism's genetic makeup, or allele combinations.49
7641961206Hardy-Weinberg EquilibriumThe principle that frequencies of alleles and genotypes in a population remain constant from generation to generation, provided that only Mendelian segregation and recombination of alleles are at work.50
7641967735Heterozygote AdvantageGreater reproductive success of heterozygous individuals compared with homozygotes; tends to preserve variation in a gene pool; in terms of the genotype, not the phenotype.51
7641979924Intersexual SelectionPreference by one sex for certain phenotypes when selecting mates.52
7641986650Intrasexual SelectionSelection within the same sex, individuals of one sex compete directly for mates of the opposite sex.53
7641990793MicroevolutionChange in allele frequencies in a population over generations.54
7641994465MutationA change in the nucleotide sequence of an organism's DNA or in the DNA or RNA of a virus55
7642016903Neutral VariationGenetic variation that does not provide a selective advantage or disadvantage.56
7642025220PhenotypeThe observable physical and physiological traits of an organism, which are determined by its genetic makeup.57
7642046993Quantitative CharacterA heritable feature that varies continuously over a range rather than in an either-or-fashion.58
7642052763Recessive AlleleAn allele that is masked when a dominant allele is present59
7642058164Relative FitnessThe contribution an individual makes to the gene pool of the next generation, relative to the contributions of other individuals in the population.60
7642061519Sexual DimorphismDifferences between the secondary sex characteristics of males and females of the same species.61
7642064395Sexual SelectionA form of natural selection in which individuals with certain inherited characteristics are more likely than other individuals to obtain mates.62
7642067480Sickle-Cell Diseaseresults from a single amino acid substitution in the protein hemoglobin, disease that makes red blood cells produce abnormal hemoglobin proteins.63
7642075414Stabilizing SelectionNatural selection in which intermediate phenotypes survive or reproduce more successfully than do extreme phenotypes.64

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