unit 5 - natural selection

biology

natural selection

The process whereby organisms better adapted to their environment tend to survive and produce more offspring. Over time, these advantageous traits become more common in the population

evolution

The change in the heritable characteristics of biological populations over generations. It is also sometimes the end result of natural selection

biodiversity

The variety of different living things in one place, encompassing the diversity of species, genetic variation within species, and the variety of ecosystems

extinction

The permanent loss of all members of a species or a group of organisms

adaptation

A heritable trait that increases the fitness of an organism in an environment, which becomes more common through the process of natural selection

mutation

A change in the nucleotide sequence of an organism’s DNA

trait

A specific characteristic of an organism, which can be morphological, physiological, or behavioral

species

A group of organisms that can interbreed and produce fertile offspring

speciation

The process by which populations evolve to become distinct species. It is the formation of two or more species from the original species