Evolutionary Biology and Charles Darwin

Vocabulary flashcards covering key concepts related to evolution, Charles Darwin, and the evidence supporting evolutionary theories.

Tiktaalik

A fossilized 'missing link' between fishes and walking land creatures, dating back 385 million years.

Fitness

The ability for an individual to survive and reproduce in its environment.

Species

A group of individual organisms that can interbreed and produce viable offspring.

Gene Pool

The complete set of genes in a population, with individuals inheriting a subset of these genes.

Speciation

The process by which one species splits into two or more new species.

Homologous Structures

Anatomical structures in different species that share a common ancestry but may serve different functions.

Analogous Structures

Structures in different species that serve similar functions but evolved independently, without a common ancestor.

Vestigial Structures

Physical structures that have lost most or all of their original function in a species.

Convergent Evolution

The process where distantly related species develop similar traits due to similar environmental pressures.

Divergent Evolution

The process where closely related species evolve different traits, often due to competition for resources.

Radiometric Dating

A method of dating fossils using the decay of isotopes to determine their age.

Natural Selection

The mechanism by which individuals with favorable adaptations are more likely to survive and reproduce.

Ancestral Characteristic

A trait or structure that has been inherited from a common ancestor and remains present in multiple descendant species.

Derived Characteristic

A trait or structure that appears in a new species and was not present in the ancestral species.

Phylogenetic Tree

An abstract tool used to show the evolutionary relationships between species based on shared characteristics.

Cladistics

A method of classifying species based on common ancestry and the branching of evolutionary lineages.