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Evolution AP SHS 1617 Flashcards

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6377090560Natural SelectionA process in which individuals that have certain inherited traits tend to survive and reproduce at higher rates than other individuals because of those traits.0
6377090561EvolutionChange in a kind of organism over time; process by which modern organisms have descended from ancient organisms.1
6377090562SpeciationA process typically caused by the genetic isolation from a main population resulting in a new genetically distinct species.2
6377090563Charles DarwinEnglish natural scientist who formulated a theory of evolution by natural selection (1809-1882)3
6377090564HMS Beagle5 yr trip to map the coast of S. America, Darwin studied a wide variety of plants and amimals4
6377090565Sexual SelectionAn evolutionary mechanism by which traits that increase the ability of individuals to attract or acquire mates appear with increasing frequency in a population; selection in which a mate is chosen on the basis of a particular trait or traits5
6377090566Artificial SelectionSelection by humans for breeding of useful traits from the natural variation among different organisms6
6377090567MutationA change in the nucleotide-base sequence of a gene or DNA molecule7
6377090568Beneficial Mutationany change to the genetic code that results in noticeable physiological changes that are of benefit to the organism8
6377090569Harmful Mutationis a mutation that decreases the fitness of the organism.9
6377090570HeredityThe biological process whereby genetic factors are transmitted from one generation to the next10
6377090571LamarckismAn evolutionary theory (proved false by Darwin) stating that species change over time by the use and disuse of structures and the inheritance of acquired traits.11
6377090572FossilsPreserved remains of once-living organisms12
6377090573BiogeographyGeographic distribution of species13
6377090574Homologous StructuresStructures that have different mature forms in different organisms but develop from the same embryonic tissues14
6377090575Analagous StructuresSimilar function but different structure - does not show common ancestry - Ex: butterfly wing and bat wing)15
6377090576Vestigial StructuresA structure that is present in an organism but no longer serves its original purpose16
6377090577AtavismIn biology, the reappearance of a characteristic in an organism after several generations of absence.17
6377090578Survival of the FittestProcess by which individuals that are better suited to their environment survive and reproduce most successfully; also called natural selection18
6377090579AdaptationA characteristic that improves an individual's ability to survive and reproduce in a particular environment.19
6377090580Directional SelectionForm of natural selection in which the entire curve moves; occurs when individuals at one end of a distribution curve have higher fitness than individuals in the middle or at the other end of the curve20
6377090581Stabilizing SelectionForm of natural selection by which the center of the curve remains in its current position; occurs when individuals near the center of a distribution curve have higher fitness than individuals at either end21
6377090582Disruptive SelectionForm of natural selection in which a single curve splits into two; occurs when individuals at the upper and lower ends of a distribution curve have higher fitness than individuals near the middle22
6377090583Bottleneck EffectGenetic drift resulting from the reduction of a population, typically by a natural disaster, such that the surviving population is no longer genetically representative of the original population.23
6377090584Founder 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.24
6377090585Genetic DriftA change in the allele frequency of a population as a result of chance events rather than natural selection.25
6377090586Hardy-Weinberg PrincipleThe 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.26
6377090587Allopatric SpeciationThe formation of a new species as a result of an ancestral population's becoming isolated by a geographic barrier.27
6377090588Sympatric SpeciationThe formation of a new species as a result of a genetic change that produces a reproductive barrier between the changed population (mutants) and the parent population. No geographic barrier is present.28
6377090589Reproductive Isolating MechanismAny barrier that prevents genetic exchange between species29
6377090590Prezygotic MechanismMechanisms which reduce the likelihood of mating.30
6377090591Postzygotic MechanismMechanisms that allow fertilization but prevent hybrid offspring from surviving or reproducing.31
6377090592Adaptive RadiationAn evolutionary pattern in which many species evolve from a single ancestral species32
6377090593Divergent EvolutionA form of evolution in which the same organism is placed into different environments with different selection pressures. This causes organisms to evolve differently, to diverge from their common ancestor. The resulting (new) species may share structural (but not necessarily functional) similarity; divergent evolution produces homologous structures.33
6377090594Convergent EvolutionProcess by which unrelated organisms independently evolve similarities when adapting to similar environments34
6377090595CoevolutionEvolutionary change in which adaptations in one species act as a selective force on a second species, inducing adaptations that in turn act as a selective force on the first species; mutual influence on the evolution of two different interacting species.35
6377090596ExtinctionA procedure in which the reinforcement of a previously reinforced behavior is discontinued. Also may be used to describe the "process" by which a previously learned behavior disappears as a result of non-reinforcement.36
6377090597Cambrian ExplosionA burst of evolutionary origins when most of the major body plans of animals appeared in a relatively brief time in geologic history; recorded in the fossil record about 545 to 525 million years ago.37
6377090598GradualismA proposed explanation in evolutionary biology stating that new species arise from the result of slight modifications (mutations and resulting phenotypic changes) over many generations.38
6377090599Punctuated EquilibriumA proposed explanation in evolutionary biology stating that species are generally stable over long periods of time. Occasionally there are rapid changes that affect some species which can quickly result in a new species.39

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