A Finch's Journey

Through Time
By: Alexa Medina
As Nina the finch looked through an old family A few miles away, a ship called the HMS Beagle
photo album, she realized her ancestors looked slowly got closer and closer to the Galapagos
different from her. “Why don’t I look like my Islands, west of South America, where Nina the
family?”, wondered Nina. finch lived.
Aboard the HMS Beagle was Charles Darwin, a As Charles Darwin un boarded the HMS Beagle,
naturalist and biologist that wondered about the he became amazed by the variety of plants and
evolution of life on Earth. animals (especially finches) on the Galapagos
Islands.
Upon receiving news of Charle’s arrival to the
Galapagos Islands, Nina the finch decides to team
up with Charles to discover more about her
family history.
As Nina and Charles look into Nina’s family
history, they discover the path of gene flow
within the population of finches. Nina was a
descendent of two different populations, so her
traits were a mix of of both.
Next, Nina and Charles compared Nina’s beak
size and shape to her grandma to gain more
information. “What types of foods do you eat
grandma?”, questioned Nina. “I eat mostly hard
seeds”, she said. Afterwards, Charles asked
Nina the same question. “I eat mostly insects”,
Nina said.
“Ah yes, your beak is different from mine”, said
Nina’s grandmother. “Centuries ago, when our
ancestors migrated here, they got separated by
a tough storm. For a long time, we lost
contact with one another. Your mother and
father changed that, Nina.”
Using this information, Charles and Nina
developed the theory of evolution. While Nina and
her ancestors were closely related, they
adapted differently to their environment due to
genetic drift, which is caused by random events
in nature. “Your ancestors developed gradually
over time to survive”, explained Charles.
“Now I know why I look so different from my
family!”, exclaimed Nina. “How did they adapt,
though?”, she asked. “It’s because of natural
selection”,explained Charles. “Your ancestors fell
in love, and had children. They passed down
favorable traits. Over time, finches evolved by
obtaining favorable traits.”
“It all makes sense now! Thank you for helping
me learn about evolution Charles”, said Nina.
“You're welcome, it was a wonderful experience.
I hope we can meet again, someday”, he replied.
As Charles Darwin boarded the HMS Beagle once
again, he thought about all the theories he could
develop in the future based on his findings. From
a distance, he saw Nina the Finch flying with her
family. He couldn't help but wonder if future
generations of finches would inherit Nina’s
curiosity about the world.