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What is the biological species concept?
It defines a species as a group of organisms that can potentially interbreed to produce viable, fertile offspring.
What is required for organisms to be considered a single species in the biological species concept?
A group of organisms must produce healthy, fertile offspring when they interbreed.
Why are horses and donkeys considered separate species?
Because they produce hybrid offspring (mules) that are infertile.
What is a common reason why different species cannot successfully interbreed?
Reproductive isolation mechanisms.
What are the two categories of reproductive isolation mechanisms?
Prezygotic barriers and postzygotic barriers.
What is an example of a prezygotic barrier?
Habitat isolation, temporal isolation, behavioral isolation, gametic isolation, or mechanical isolation.
What do postzygotic barriers do?
They prevent hybrid zygotes from developing into healthy, fertile adults.
What is speciation?
The process by which an ancestral species splits into two or more descendant species that can no longer interbreed.
What is allopatric speciation?
Speciation that occurs due to geographic separation of populations from a parent species.
What leads to genetic divergence in allopatric speciation?
Natural selection and other evolutionary forces such as genetic drift.
What is sympatric speciation?
Speciation that occurs within a parent species that remains in one location.
What role does reproductive isolation play in speciation?
It prevents gene flow between newly formed populations, allowing them to evolve into distinct species.
How does Darwin's model of speciation describe the process?
As a branching event representing the divergence of species from a common ancestor.
What happens to populations when reproductive barriers become strong?
They will continue to evolve separately and be considered separate species, even if geographical barriers are removed.
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