Evolution

UNIT 8
Review Notes
What is Evolution?

The process of how species _____________________.

Biological Species Concept

Any individuals that can mate and produce _______ offspring

Example: Different dog breeds

Non-Example: Mules and Ligers which are hybrids (not a

species)

*Note: There are other species concepts

Taxonomy
____________________ – Way of classifying/naming species

Gets more specific as you move down

Dr. King Phillip came over for good soup

Taxonomy
Phylogenetic Tree vs Cladogram
Show evolutionary relationships between organisms
_______________________ _____________________
- Relationships are backed by - Relationships are hypothetical
evidence like DNA - length of lines have no meaning
- length of lines show amount of time
Reading a Cladogram

Derived traits – feature that has

appeared

Read from left to right

 Reading a Cladogram

What derived trait do amphibians have according to the cladogram above?

 Reading a Cladogram

Who is closer related, birds and humans or birds and amphibians?

 Creating a Cladogram

Create a cladogram from the information below

Tortoise horse wolf Leopard House Cat

Hair x x x x

Carnivores x x x

Retractable Claws x x

Purring x
Creating a Cladogram
Dichotomous Key
A tool that can be used to
identify organisms

- Always start at line ____

Charles Darwin – Father of Evolution

- Famous for his ideas on Evolution

- Studied life on the ___________________
- Wrote The Origin of Species
- Book about evolution
Charles Darwin

Darwin explained the evolution of species is driven

by a process called _____________________:

● Organisms with adaptations that allow them to survive

and reproduce will pass on those traits to offspring

● Environment (nature) ‘selects’ which organisms will

survive and produce more and similar offspring
Evidence of Evolution

1. Fossils
2. Geography (Pangaea)
3. Embryology
4. Anatomy (homologous and vestigial structures)
5. DNA and protein Evidence
6. Observational Evidence
1. Fossils

• Physical evidence of former life

• Formed from the preserved

remains of dead organisms. Hard
parts such as shells or bones.

• Show how populations of

organisms change across time
• Scientists can use radioactive
decay and depth to date
fossils
2. Geography (Pangea)

• Common ancestors lived on all continents with no way to

get across oceans.
• Lead Scientists to the idea of ___________
• The idea that separated continents today,
were once one land mass or supercontinent
2. Geography (Pangea)

• We now know today about ___________________ which are

separations in earth’s crust that slowly move, creating a
drift of continents
3. Embryology

Comparing developing embryos show patterns that suggest how

development has evolved.
- All vertebrates have gill slits and a tail as embryos.

Can you label which embryo is which animal?

4. Anatomy Evidence

______________________: A structure that is similar among

different organisms.

Indicates they may have evolved from a common ancestor.

4. Anatomy Evidence

____________________: Similar structures (structures that have

the same function) in two different organisms that evolved
separately from each other
4. Anatomy Evidence

______________________: Apparently useless structures found

in a species.
- May have been useful at one time or may be useful in another
species.

- Example: Pelvic bones in whales

and snakes
4. Anatomy Evidence

Human Examples of vestigial structures:

• Goose bumps – No fur

• Coccyx – Remnants of tail

• Wisdom teeth – Grazer Ancestors

• Appendix – Good Bacteria?

• Forearm tendon – Grip strength?

• Outer ear muscles – Turn ears

5. DNA Evidence

- DNA is the living code for ____________________

- The more similarities found in DNA, the closer organisms seem
to be related
3. Observational Evidence

We can observe life over time to give evidence to support

evolution
Examples:
- Peppered moths
- Antibiotic resistant bacteria
Human Influence on Evolution

___________________: Selection for traits that are desirable by

humans.
Human Influence on Evolution

Human influence on commercial fishing has caused fish to

become smaller and smaller.
- Bigger fish are more sought after and captured by humans
- This leaves an abundance of smaller fish to reproduce and
pass on their “small size” genes