Natural Selection And Evolution Vocab And Examples

Natural Selection Def.

Survival and reproductive success of organisms with qualities best suited to their environment

Natural Selection Ex.

Neck of giraffes getting longer

Embryo Def.

An unborn or unhatched offspring in the process of development, in particular a human offspring during the period from approximately the second to the eighth week after fertilization (after which it is usually termed a fetus).

Embryo Ex.

Human Embryo

Homologous Structure def.

Features in an organism that have different functions but are structurally the same.

Homologous Structure ex. 

Human arm lifting

Analogous Structure def.

Features in organisms that serve the same function but are structurally different.

Analogous Structure ex.

Bat Wings

Environmental Changes def.

Significant change in a habitat caused by natural processes or human activity

Environmental Changes ex.

Desert

Fossils def.

Preserved remains/impression/trace of any organism from a previous geological age

Fossils ex.

Insects in amber

Adaptation def.

Action of adapting

Adaptation ex.

Giraffes necks getting longer

Vestigial Structure def.

Organs that have been retrained

Vestigial Structure ex.

Wisdom teeth

Evolution def.

process of change/adaptation through multiple generations

Evolution ex.

Dragonflies loses coloration

Common ancestor def.

Organism shared by 2 or more descendant lineages

Common ancestor ex.

Elephant and mammoth

Speciation def.

Process where a species evolves into 2 different distinct species.

Speciation ex.

Finches on Galápagos Islands that Darwin studied

Extinction def.

Process where a species dies off

Extinction ex.

Dodo birds