Biology Key Terms: Adaptation, Genetics, and Evolution Concepts

Adaptive trait

a trait that makes it more likely that an individual will survive in a specific environment

camouflage

a way of hiding by looking the same as the background

cause

an event or process that leads to a result or change

chromeosome

a long piece of DNA that contains many genes

climate change

changes in climate over a long period of time that can be caused by natural events or human activities

distribution

the number of individuals with each trait in a population

DNA

a type of molecule that genes and chromosomes are made of

effect

a result or change that happens because of an event or process

environment

everything (living and nonliving) that surrounds an organism

extinct

having died out completely and no longer alive anywhere on Earth

featrue

a characteristic that all members of a species have

fossil

evidence of life from the past, such as fossilized bones, footprints, or leaf prints

gene

an instruction for making a protein molecule

gene version

A specific form of a gene that provides instruction for making a particular protein molecule

generation

a group of individuals born and living at the same time

histrogram

a graph that uses bars to show how characteristics or values are distributed within a group

human activities

things people do that affect the Earth system

inherent

to receive genes from a parent

mass extinction

when a huge number of species on Earth die out completely around the same time

mutation

a random change to a gene that sometimes results in a new trait

natural selection

the process by which the distribution of traits in a population changes over many generations

non-adaptive

a trait that makes it less likely that an individual will survive in a specific environment

nyniph

a young insect that looks somewhat different form the adult

offspring

an organism produced as a result of reproduction

population

a group of the same type of organism living in the same area

prediction

an idea about what might happen that is based on what you already know

protein molecule

a type of large molecule that performs important functions inside organisms

selection pressure

something in the environment that affects an individual's chances of surviving

sexual reproduction

the process in which two parents pass on their genes to create offspring

species

a group of organisms of the same kind (in one or more populations) that do not reproduce with organisms from any other group

trait

a specific characteristic of an individual organism

variation

any difference in traits between individual organisms