Evolution and Classification

Learning Objectives
1. Explain the relationship between evolution and classification.

How Are Evolution and Classification Related?

 In 1859, Charles Darwin published a theory about how species could change
over time.
 Darwin’s theory is often referred to as the theory of evolution.
 Evolution is the gradual change in a species over time.
 Darwin believed that evolution took place through the process of natural selection
in which individuals that are better adapted to their environment are more likely to
survive and reproduce than other members of the same species.
 The theory of evolution has changed how biologists classify organisms.
 Scientists now understand that certain organisms may be similar because they
share a common ancestor and an evolutionary history.
 The more similar the two groups are, the more recent the common ancestor
probably is.
 Today’s system of classification takes into account the history of a species.
 Species with similar evolutionary histories are classified more closely together.

CHARLES DARWIN
Branching Tree Diagrams
 Probable evolutionary relationships among groups of organisms and the order in
which specific characteristics may have evolved are illustrated using a branching
tree diagram.
 The base of such a diagram shows the common ancestor.

 Organisms are grouped according to their shared derived characteristics, which

are usually homologous structures, or structures that have the same evolutionary
origin.
Determining Evolutionary Relationships
 In addition to comparing the structures of organisms, scientists can also use
information about the chemical makeup of their cells.
 Unrelated organisms may have similar characteristics or body structures
because they evolved in similar environments.
 The process by which unrelated organisms evolve characteristics that are similar
is called convergent evolution.
 When studying the chemical makeup of organisms, scientists sometimes
discover new information that results in reclassification.