Evolution Part 2

Allele frequency

a measure of how common a certain allele is in the population

Bottleneck effect

A change in allele frequency following a dramatic reduction in the size of a population

Coevolution

Process by which two species evolve in response to changes in each other

Convergent evolution

Process by which unrelated organisms independently evolve similarities when adapting to similar environments

Divergent evolution

when two or more species sharing a common ancestor become more different over time

Founder effect

genetic drift that occurs after a small number of individuals colonize a new area

Gene flow

movement of alleles from one population to another

Gene pool

Combined genetic information of all the members of a particular population

Genetic drift

A change in the allele frequency of a population as a result of chance events rather than natural selection.

Hybridization

Breeding technique that involves crossing dissimilar individuals to bring together the best traits of both organisms

Microevolution

Change in allele frequencies in a population over generations.

Normal distribution

A function that represents the distribution of variables as a symmetrical bell-shaped graph.

Recombination

the genetic process by which one chromosome breaks off and attaches to another chromosome during reproductive cell division

Sexual selection

when individuals select mates based on heritable traits

Speciation

Formation of new species