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5.4 Darwins Theory of Evolution

1. Darwin's theory of evolution by natural selection proposed that species change over generations through a process of preservation of favorable traits and elimination of unfavorable traits as organisms adapt to their environments. 2. Evidence for evolution comes from anatomy, molecular biology, biogeography, and the fossil record showing shared characteristics between related species and transitions in the fossil record over time. 3. Examples of direct observation of microevolution include insects rapidly evolving resistance to pesticides through selection of resistant genetic traits within a few generations.

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83 views6 pages

5.4 Darwins Theory of Evolution

1. Darwin's theory of evolution by natural selection proposed that species change over generations through a process of preservation of favorable traits and elimination of unfavorable traits as organisms adapt to their environments. 2. Evidence for evolution comes from anatomy, molecular biology, biogeography, and the fossil record showing shared characteristics between related species and transitions in the fossil record over time. 3. Examples of direct observation of microevolution include insects rapidly evolving resistance to pesticides through selection of resistant genetic traits within a few generations.

Uploaded by

Yuuki Chitose (tai-kun)
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© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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5.

4 DARWIN’S THEORY OF EVOLUTION

Natural Selection

- “preservation of favourable variations and rejection of injurious variations,” with nature


making the selection over time.

- natural elimination.

- response to the changing environment is the source of biodiversity

These were his central tenets:

1. A species is a collection of individuals (a population) similar enough to


breed with one another; species adapt while individuals do not.
2. Within a species chance variations occur; individuals differ some but not too much.
3. Variations within a species are likely to be inherited by an individual’s offspring.
(Darwin observed this but did not know how it occurred.)
4. Some variants prove to be better adapted to, or fitter for, their particular
environment; hence, they get more resources and have more offspring.
5. Because the more adapted, or fitter, individuals live to have more offspring,
later populations will look more like them and will inherit their adaptive
characteristics.
6. Individuals who possess traits that are sexually attractive are also likely to
have more offspring (sexual selection).
7. This process of evolution produces endless change because the
environment changes continually.

Artificial Selection

“change occurs rapidly as breeders choose which individuals will be allowed to breed to achieve
the traits the breeders want.”

Evolution happens on large and small scales

 Macroevolution, which refers to large-scale changes that occur over


extended time periods, such as the formation of new species and
groups.

 Microevolution, which refers to small-scale changes that affect just one or a


few genes and happen in populations over shorter timescales.
The evidence for evolution that provides evidence for, and can allow us to reconstruct,
macroevolutionary events.

Darwin’s theory of natural selection rested on three kinds of evidence: (1) fossils, (2)
homologies, and (3) geographic distribution. Specifically, evidence for evolution comes from
many different areas of biology:

 Anatomy. Species may share similar physical features because the feature was present in
a common ancestor (homologous structures).

 Molecular biology. DNA and the genetic code reflect the shared ancestry of life. DNA

comparisons can show how related species are.

 Biogeography. The global distribution of organisms and the unique features of island
species reflect evolution and geological change.

 Fossils. Fossils document the existence of now-extinct past species that are related to
present-day species.

 Direct observation. We can directly observe small-scale evolution in organisms with short
lifecycles (e.g., pesticide-resistant insects).

-------------------------

Figure 5.2 Darwin's Tree of Life, 1859


1. Anatomy and embryology

- Darwin thought of evolution as "descent with modification," a process in which species change
and give rise to new species over many generations. He proposed that the evolutionary history
of life forms a branching tree with many levels, in which all species can be traced back to an
ancient common ancestor.

Figure 5.3 The fingers of four mammals.

These homologous bones have been modified by natural selection in response to environment
and function.

Homologous features

- If two or more species share a unique physical feature, such as a complex bone
structure or a body plan, they may all have inherited this feature from a common
ancestor. Physical features shared due to evolutionary history (a common ancestor) are
said to be homologous.

- Some homologous structures can be seen only in embryos.

- Homologous embryonic structures reflect that the developmental programs of


vertebrates are variations on a similar plan that existed in their last common ancestor.

- Sometimes, organisms have structures that are homologous to important structures in


other organisms but that have lost their major ancestral function. These structures,
which are often reduced in size, are known as vestigial structures
Figure 5.4 Artic Fox and Ptarmigan

Analogous features

- They evolved independently in different organisms because the organisms lived in


similar environments or experienced similar selective pressures.

- This process is called convergent evolution. (To converge means to come together,
like two lines meeting at a point.)

Determining relationships from similar features

- They study a large collection of features (often, both physical features and DNA
sequences) and draw conclusions about relatedness based on these features as a
group

2. Molecular Biology

Like structural homologies, similarities between biological molecules can reflect shared
evolutionary ancestry. At the most basic level, all living organisms share:

 The same genetic material (DNA)

 The same, or highly similar, genetic codes

 The same basic process of gene expression (transcription and translation)

 The same molecular building blocks, such as amino acids

These shared features suggest that all living things are descended from a common
ancestor, and that this ancestor had DNA as its genetic material, used the genetic code, and
expressed its genes by transcription and translation
Homologous genes

- Biologists often compare the sequences of related genes found in different species
(often called homologous or orthologous genes) to figure out how those species are
evolutionarily related to one another.

3. Biogeography

- The geographic distribution of organisms on Earth follows patterns that are best
explained by evolution, in combination with the movement of tectonic plates over
geological time.

4. Fossil record

- Fossils are the preserved remains of previously living organisms or their traces, dating from
the distant past. The fossil record is not, alas, complete or unbroken: most organisms never
fossilize, and even the organisms that do fossilize are rarely found by humans. Nonetheless, the
fossils that humans have collected offer unique insights into evolution over long timescales.

How can the age of fossils be determined?

- fossils are often contained in rocks that build up in layers called strata.

- Fossils found in different strata at the same site can be ordered by their positions, and
"reference" strata with unique features can be used to compare the ages of fossils
across locations.

- Scientist date fossils using radiometric dating, a process that measures the radioactive
decay of certain elements.

Figure 5.5 Equine Evolution


Direct observation of microevolution

In the 1950s, there was a worldwide effort to eradicate malaria by eliminating its carriers (certain
types of mosquitos).

Why are mosquito populations able to evolve rapid resistance to DDT?

- large population size

- short lifecycle

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