Natural Selection and Evolution

This set of flashcards covers key vocabulary and concepts relating to natural selection and evolution, based on the lecture notes provided.

Natural Selection

The process where organisms better adapted to their environment tend to survive and produce more offspring.

Trait

Any observable characteristic of an organism, such as morphology, behavior, physiology, or genetic sequences.

Phenotype

The observable physical, developmental, and behavioral characteristics of an organism.

Genotype

The combination of alleles at a particular genetic locus.

Allele

Alternative forms of a genetic locus.

Fitness

A measure of reproductive success relative to the average reproductive success in a population.

Variation

Differences among individuals in a population.

Inheritance

The transmission of traits from parents to offspring.

Differential Reproductive Success

Variability in reproductive success that leads to changes in the population.

Adaptation

An inherited trait that makes an organism more fit in its environment, resulting from natural selection.

Exaptation

A trait that originally evolved for one function, but is co-opted for a different function.

Microevolutionary Processes

Changes in allele frequency from one generation to the next, involving selection, mutation, gene flow, and genetic drift.

Pleiotropy

A situation where one gene affects multiple traits.

Antagonistic Pleiotropy

When genes that are beneficial in one context have detrimental effects in another.

Gene Flow

The transfer of genetic material between populations.

Evolutionary Arms Race

A dynamic where two or more species reciprocally affect each other's evolution.

Constraints on Natural Selection

Limitations such as lack of foresight, absence of genetic variation, and physical constraints that affect the effectiveness of natural selection.