Evolution, Taxonomy, & Systematics

What is the occupation of Thomas Malthus?

Economist

What did Thomas Malthus say?

populations tend to have more offspring than will reach childhood

What is the occupation of Charles Darwin?

biologist/naturalist

Where and what did Charles Darwin study?

Cambridge University - Theology

What islands were explored by Darwin?

the Galapagos islands

What did Darwin find about the different islands?

they have different compositions in plants, animals, and topography

What book did Darwin write about his findings?

On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection

What was Darwin’s theory on evolution?

Descent with modification

What is the descent with modification theory?

things change overtime to adapt to or adjust to their environment

What species was Darwin famously known for?

the Galapagos Finches

What trait about the finches allowed Darwin to come up with his evolutionary theory?

the beaks of the finches were different between the ones in different islands

The evolutionary theory, descent with modification, led to which saying?

Survival of the Fittest

Who’s work did Darwin read to help develop his evolutionary theory?

Thomas Malthus

What was Darwin criticized for, in regards to the finches?

he didn’t know how the beaks were being passed on

Who lived as a monk when Darwin’s book was published, so their work wasn’t discovered until 40 years after they passed?

Gregor Mendel

What is taxonomy?

the science of describing, naming and classifying both extant species and extinct species

What are extant species?

those living today

What are extinct species?

those that have died out

What is the goal of taxonomy?

organize living species of organisms into groups based on similarities and dissimilarities in their characteristics

Who is John Ray & why is he important?

an English naturalist, made the first attempt to create a useful taxonomic system for classification

Who and when expanded Ray’s system?

Carl von Linnaeus in mid 1700’s

What is systematics?

the study of biological diversity and the evolutionary relationships among species, both extant and extinct

Who and when began classifying species based on evolutionary relationships?

Will Hennig in 1950’s

Who is Will Hennig?

a German entomologist

How do taxonomists place species into similar groups today?

based on evolutionary development along with numerous other factors

Taxonomists place species into ___ groups?

progressively smaller

Each group at any level of the taxonomic system used today is called a:

taxon

What is the plural of taxon?

taxa

What is the order of the different taxa from most inclusive to least inclusive?

Domain, Supergroup, Kingdom, Phylum, Class, Order, Family, Genus, Species

Which taxon is most inclusive?

Domain

Which taxon is least inclusive?

species

What is Binomial Nomenclature?

a method for providing every identified species a scientific name — essentially, a scientific name is composed of the genus name plus the species name

The terms used in the scientific name are typically:

Latin or Greek

What are the rules to binomial nomenclature?

The first letter of the genus name is capitalized and the species name is in lower case & both are always underlined or italicized

What is a species?

a group of related organisms that share a distinctive form and are capable of interbreeding in nature to produce viable offspring

The definition of a species is also known as the:

Biological Species Concept

Who came up with the Biological Species Concept and when?

Ernst Mayr in 1942

Who and when proposed the addition of the Domain category to the taxonomic heirarchy?

Carl Woese in the 1970s

What are the 3 domains that all life is organized into?

Archaea, Bacteria, Eukarya

What are the characteristics of the Domain Archaea?

prokaryotic, single celled, many adapted to live in harsh environments

What are the characteristics of the Domain Bacteria?

prokaryotic, more complex, things like Streptococcus

What are the characteristics of the Domain Eukarya?

eukaryotic

Which kingdoms are part of Domain Eukarya?

Protists, Fungi, Plants, & Animals

What are the 6 kingdoms of organization?

Archaebacteria, Eubacteria, Protista, Fungi, Plantae, Animalia

What did Jean Baptiste de Lamarck propose?

he proposed that a process of development known as Inheritance of Acquired Characteristics

Who is known as the father of modern geology?

Charles Lyell

What did Charles Lyell suggest?

the surface of the Earth was formed by numerous processes over millions of years

Who wrote the An Essay on the Principle of Populations?

Thomas Malthus

What time period did Charles Darwin exist?

1809-1882

When did Darwin serve as a naturalist on the HMS Beagle?

1831

When did Darwin publish his book?

1859

Who encouraged Darwin to publish his work?

Charles Lyell & Ressel Wallace

Evolution occurs through a process of:

Natural Selection

What is natural selection?

Heritable traits that provide organisms with an advantage in their environment can be passed on to future offspring

What was not covered in Darwin’s books?

the origin of humans and the precise mechanism of genetic variation

What are the 5 main evidences for evolution?

fossils, embryonic development, anatomical structures, biogeography, and molecular studies

Why do fossils provide evidence for evolution?

they document past species that are similar to present-day species

Why does embryonic development provide evidence for evolution?

patterns of development are similar among animal groups

What are the 3 structures in anatomical structures?

homologous structures, analogous structures, and vestigial structures

What are homologous structures?

structures that are derived from a common ancestor but have evolved different functions over time

What are analogous structures?

structures that do not share a common ancestor but have evolved similar functions over time - due to similarities in environment

What are vestigial structures?

residual structures from a past ancestor that have no apparent function today - ex. Wisdom Teeth

Who was Alfred Russel Wallace?

he developed a theory of evolution by natural selection essentially identical to Darwin’s theory

What is phylogenetics?

study of the evolutionary history of life using genetics

What are phylogenetic trees?

diagrams that show the evolutionary relationships among various species. These are based on morphological or genetic data

What illustrates how living things are connected?

The Web of Life

What is the web of life?

the product of speciation following evolution by vertical descent (with mutation) and horizontal descent (with genetic transfer)

What is vertical descent?

descent with mutation

What is horizontal descent?

descent with genetic transfer

How are species grouped in phylogenetic trees?

based on their evolutionary history

Which kind of structures are critical in the development of phylogenetic trees?

homologous structures

What are the two types of groups in phylogenetic trees?

Monophyletic group (clade) & paraphyletic group

What is a monophyletic group?

this is a group of species consisting of most common ancestor and all of its descendants

What is a paraphyletic group?

contains a common ancestor and some, but not all, of its descendants

What can be accomplished by examining the fossil record?

Dating evolutionary events

How can the age of fossils be deermined?

through radiometric dating/carbon 14 dating

Unfortunately, the fossil record is:

not complete

Developing phylogenetic trees is based on:

• Similar morphological features between extinct and modern species.

• Patterns of embryonic development.

• Analysis of genetic material (DNA and RNA) and proteins

What is systematics?

the study of the diversification of living forms, both past and present, and the relationships among living things through time

Geologic data suggests that the Earth is approximately how old?

4.5 billion years old

What are the 5 major environmental changes that have happened in Earth’s history?

temperature change, atmosphere, plate tectonics, floods & glaciations, and volcanic eruptions

Temperature changes:

through time, the Earth has experienced major fluctuations in temperature which produced ice ages and warmer periods

What produced the variety of different habitats on earth?

the temperature on earth not being uniform

Atmosphere:

the chemical composition of gases in the atmosphere has changed substantially over time

What has happened as photosynthetic organisms occured?

the oxygen levels have increased significatly

What has higher oxygen levels lead to?

the emergence of complex animals that live on land

Plate tectonics/Continental Drift:

movement of landmasses over time to form the current position of the continents

Which major environmental change had a distinct impact on speciation and evolution?

plate tectonics

Floods and Glaciations:

changed land features and impacted speciation and evolution

Volcanic eruptions:

harmed species in some areas and lead to the formation of new islands in other areas