Biology Lecture Practice Flashcards

A comprehensive set of vocabulary flashcards covering evolutionary biology, genetics, speciation, macroevolution, animal behavior, ecology, and conservation based on lecture notes.

Descent with Modification

The idea that species evolve from common ancestors, accumulating adaptations over generations.

Aristotle

Philosopher who believed species are fixed and arranged by complexity.

Cuvier

Scientist who noted fossils show changes in species over time and proposed catastrophism.

Uniformitarianism

Concept proposed by Hutton & Lyell stating Earth is shaped by gradual processes, implying an old Earth.

Lamarck

Scientist who proposed use/disuse and inheritance of acquired traits, a theory not supported today.

HMS Beagle Voyage

The voyage where Darwin collected specimens and noted similarities between island and mainland species.

Gal
apagos Finches

Birds whose variation in beak shape Darwin linked to diet and environment.

Natural Selection

Process where individuals with advantageous traits survive and reproduce more, based on variation and overproduction of offspring.

Adaptation

An inherited trait that increases an organism's fitness.

Artificial Selection

Human-driven breeding for specific traits.

Convergent Evolution

The independent evolution of similar traits in unrelated groups.

Microevolution

Change in allele frequencies in a population over generations.

Genetic Drift

Random changes in allele frequencies, which are stronger in small populations.

Gene Flow

The movement of alleles between populations, which tends to reduce genetic differences.

Founder Effect

A type of genetic drift that occurs when a few individuals start a new population.

Bottleneck Effect

A type of genetic drift resulting from a sudden reduction in population size.

Relative Fitness

An individual's contribution to the next generation’s gene pool.

Directional Selection

A mode of natural mapping that favors one extreme of a phenotypic range.

Stabilizing Selection

A mode of natural selection that favors intermediate traits over extremes.

Intrasexual Selection

Competition within one sex for mates, such as male-male combat.

Intersexual Selection

Mate choice, typically where females prefer showy males.

Heterozygote Advantage

A type of balancing selection where heterozygotes have higher fitness, such as the sickle-cell allele in malaria-prevalent regions.

Speciation

The process by which one species splits into two or more species, bridging microevolution and macroevolution.

Biological Species Concept

Defines a species as a group of populations that interbreed in nature and produce viable, fertile offspring.

Habitat Isolation

A prezygotic barrier where species occupy different environments.

Mechanical Isolation

A prezygotic barrier involving incompatible reproductive structures.

Reduced Hybrid Fertility

A postzygotic barrier where hybrids are vigorous but cannot reproduce.

Allopatric Speciation

Speciation caused by geographic separation that restricts gene flow.

Sympatric Speciation

Speciation occurring without geographic separation, often driven by polyploidy or habitat differentiation.

Punctuated Equilibria

A tempo of speciation characterized by sudden changes followed by long periods of stasis.

Macroevolution

Evolutionary changes that occur above the species level.

Radiometric Dating

A method using isotope decay to determine the age of fossils.

Stromatolites

Fossilized mats of bacteria that provide evidence of life from $3.5$ billion years ago.

Endosymbiosis Theory

The theory that mitochondria and plastids originated from engulfed prokaryotes.

Pangaea

A supercontinent that formed approximately $250$ mya before breaking apart via continental drift.

Permian Extinction

A mass extinction approximately $252$ mya linked to volcanic activity and climate change.

Adaptive Radiations

Periods of rapid evolution of new species to fill ecological niches, often following mass extinctions.

Heterochrony

Evolutionary changes in the timing or rate of developmental events.

Homeotic Genes (Hox genes)

Genes that control the layout of the body plan.

Fixed Action Patterns

Unlearned, unchangeable sequences of behavior triggered by a sign stimulus.

Proximate Causes

The 'how' of behavior, focusing on stimuli and developmental influences.

Ultimate Causes

The 'why' of behavior, focusing on its evolutionary history and survival benefit.

Circadian Rhythms

Biological cycles occurring on a daily $24$-hour clock.

Pheromones

Chemical signals used for communication, such as alarm signals in minnows.

Imprinting

Learning that occurs during a sensitive period early in life and involves bonding with an individual.

Optimal Foraging Model

A model suggesting behavior is a balance between food gain and the costs of energy or predation.

Altruism

Behavior that reduces an individual's own fitness to increase the fitness of others.

Inclusive Fitness

The total effect an individual has on proliferating its genes by producing its own offspring and providing aid that enables other close relatives to increase the production of their offspring.

Ecology

The scientific study of interactions between organisms and their environment.

Landscape Ecology

The study of energy and nutrient exchanges across multiple ecosystems.

Westerlies

Wind patterns that move from west to east.

Rain Shadows

Dry regions on the leeward side of mountains created by the cooling and precipitation of air on the windward side.

Biomes

Major life zones defined by vegetation type (terrestrial) or physical environment (aquatic).

Competitive Exclusion Principle

States that two species with identical niches cannot coexist.

Resource Partitioning

Differentiation of niches that allows similar species to coexist in a community.

Aposematic Coloration

Warning coloration used by animals with effective chemical defenses.

Batesian Mimicry

A defense mechanism where a harmless species mimics a harmful one.

Keystone Species

Species that have a low abundance but exert a high impact on community structure.

Primary Succession

Ecological succession that begins in a lifeless area where soil has not yet formed.

Biophilia

The innate human connection to nature.

Minimum Viable Population (MVP)

The smallest population size at which a species can sustain itself.

Sustainable Development

Development that meets current needs without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.