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Lecture 6 BoL Summary - Evolution
Lecture 6 BoL Summary - Evolution
WHAT IS EVOLUTION?
The theory of descent with modification - two main historical models for the origin
of species
● Theory of special creation (not supported)
○ Species do not change (fish stays a fish, bird stays a bird)
○ Lineages do not split (one species cannot diverge and turn into another
species)
○ Each species is separately created
○ Each species is independently created (no clear coherence or relationship
between various species)
○ Earth and life are young
● Descent with modification (evolution)
○ Became accepted by scientific community after Darwin published the Origin
of Species by Means of Natural Selection (1859)
○ Earth’s species are the products of descent with modification from a
common ancestor
PART 1
Microevolution
Evidence:
● Selective breeding (artificial selection)
● Observation of natural populations
● The anatomy of living species
Selective breeding
● 24 generations of selective breeding for far-running mice
● Selected for far running
● Whole population has changed into a population that is better at running
(phenotype/characteristic)
PART 2
Speciation
Note: something is considered a separate species when they can produce offspring with
other members of the same species, but not with members of neighbouring species
PART 3
Macroevolution
● Novel forms of life can derive from earlier forms
● E.g. tetrapods arose from a lineage of fish (this kind of dramatic change over time is
called macroevolution)
Evidence:
● Fossils - if novel life forms are descended with modification from earlier forms,
then the fossil record should capture evidence of transmutations in progress
○ From water to land
○ From land to air
■ Rudimentary feathers (keeping warm, “pretty” for sexual purposes)
■ Developed all the way to motor flight
PART 4
● We all come from a common ancestor, LUCA (last universal common ancestor)
● Starting point for all these branches of life, the 3 main domains of life:
○ Archaea
○ Eukaryotes (plants, animals and fungi)
○ Bacteria
SUMMARY
PART 6
Some individuals are more successful at surviving & reproducing than others
● Monitoring of beak size before and after a big drought in 1977 (this influences the
availability of the number & type of food, in this case seeds)
● In this drought, large hard seeds were more prevalent than small soft seeds
● So in this drought, the big beak birds had an advantage
○ It was easier for them to get their food
○ Therefore they were more likely to survive & produce offspring
→ the outcome is that alleles associated with higher fitness increase in frequency from
one generation to the next