Biology Evolution (Natural selection, Proof of Evolution, Human evolution)

What is the Bottleneck effect in evolution?

It occurs when a small population is caused by a sudden change in environment or mass hunting, exacerbating genetic drift, reducing genetic variation, and increasing the risk of extinction.

What is non-random mating?

It refers to inbreeding and assortative mating, where individuals have sexual preferences toward certain phenotypes.

Stabilising, Directional and Disruptive selection?

What are the effects of inbreeding?

Inbreeding results in less heterozygous genotypes and can have both negative and positive effects.

How does assortative mating work?

It consists of positive mating with similar genotypes/phenotypes or negative mating, where individuals avoid others with similar traits.

What role do mutations play in evolution?

Mutations introduce new alleles or genes into the gene pool, such as insecticide resistance.

Define gene flow in population genetics.

Gene flow is the transfer of alleles into or out of a population due to the movement of fertile individuals.

Caused by migration/ movement of gametes (pollen spreading)

What defines a species?

A species is a group of organisms that can mate naturally and produce fertile offspring.

3 types of natural selection?

Mortality selection: Survival of the fittest

Sexual selection: Attracting a mate

Fecundity selection: Producing more offspring

What is allopatric separation in speciation?

Allopatric separation occurs when a population becomes divided due to geographic changes, leading to different selection pressures and evolution.

What is sympatric separation?

Sympatric separation can occur within the same geographical area due to physical, behavioral, or genetic differences.

What is polyploidy?

Polyploidy is when an individual/species has a chromosome number that is a multiple of the usual haploid number.

What is the Founder effect in genetic drift?

The Founder effect occurs when a few individuals become isolated from a larger population, forming a new one with a smaller gene pool.