Year 8 Science - Biology - Evolution, Inheritance, and Variation

A comprehensive set of vocabulary flashcards based on the Year 8 Biology lecture notes covering evolution, natural selection, variation, inheritance, and extinction.

Population

All the individuals of the same species in an area/habitat

Natural Selection

The process by which useful characteristics are passed on to the next generation; it is the process which results in evolution.

Variation

Differences between living things of the same species.

Species

Organisms which can reproduce to produce fertile offspring.

Extinct

When there are no more living examples of a species.

Competition

Happens when organisms need the same resources to survive.

Fossil record

A data set of all the fossils to be found.

Fossils

The remains of dead organisms, which have been mineralised.

Evolution

The gradual change in a species over time.

Survival of the fittest

The organisms which are adapted well to the environment survive.

Biodiversity

The range of organisms in an ecosystem.

Conservation

Ways which we protect species so that they do no go extinct.

Gene bank

Keeps genetic material stored for the future, for example seedbanks in Kew.

Captive breeding

Where organisms are bred in zoos, safari parks and aquarium to be released into the wild.

Inherited characteristic

Controlled by genes and is passed on from parents to offspring in DNA.

DNA

The molecule in which inherited characteristics are passed from parents to offspring.

Body cells

Contain a pair of each chromosome - one from each parent.

Gametes

Egg and sperm cells which each contain one copy of each chromosome.

Fertilisation

The joining together of haploid gametes (egg and sperm) to form a diploid zygote.

Mutations

Changes in DNA that can cause certain genetic conditions such as cystic fibrosis.

Continuous variation

Where a characteristic can have any value within a range, such as height or weight.

Discontinuous variation

Where a characteristic can only have a certain value, such as eye colour or blood group.

Charles Darwin

The scientist who discovered natural selection and founded the theory of evolution by natural selection.

Amber fossils

A specific type of fossil mentioned in the fossil records.

Carbon film fossils

A specific type of fossil mentioned in the fossil records.

Trace fossils

A specific type of fossil mentioned in the fossil records.

Causes of extinction

Factors including new disease, new predators, new competitors, climate change, human activity (hunting, deforestation, pollution), or catastrophic events like meteorites.

Examples of extinct species

Species including the dodo bird, the woolly mammoth, and the Tyrannosaurus Rex (T REX).