Vertical Evolution And Theoretical Analysis

Genetic diversity allows the population to adapt to changing environments and it contributes and adds to the gene pool.

In the words of Sir Charles Darwin, “It is not the strongest of the species that survives, nor the most intelligent that survives. It is the one that is most adaptable to change.”

In the process of natural selection, individuals that have certain inherited traits tend to survive and

There are many definitions of success when it comes to the evolution of living organisms: number, diversity, size, distribution, longevity, evolutionary history, generalization, specialization, even usefulness to humans. Throughout history, groups or individual species, have faced many challenges on Earth. All animals have adapted differently to the constantly altering living conditions. Some have been immensely superior to others in their ability to survive and rule all forms of life. Their complexity varies, but because of their ability to adapt, it’s what has made these species successful. Adaptation is an evolutionary process that allows animals to become superior in a particular

2. Allopatric speciation occurs due to a geographic isolation process such as when a pond might dry up and create two ponds, a flood, a river is re-routed, or a bird carries seeds in its feathers and drops the seeds in new location during the birds migration. The species of the previous geographic location also become reproductively isolated. The population then becomes two separate populations and begins to change over time due to changes in the gene pool, environments, natural selection and mutations. With this understanding it is possible to see that plate tectonics theory and continental drift theory possibly resulted in allopatric speciation.

The environment determines which traits are most evolutionary desirable to an organism. If a population should move or should the environment change, a different set of traits would be the most advantageous

Phenotypic plasticity, or differing phenotypes from one genotype in different environmental conditions, is a way for sessile organisms to adapt to changing environmental conditions (Valladares et al., 2007). Plasticity was expected to be abundant, however, it did not occur as often in nature due to resource limitations and environmental stress (Valladares et al., 2007).

Divergent evolution occurs when two populations of the same species are separated and become genetically different. Two types of divergent evolution are demonstrated in Figure 2. One type is called Allopatric speciation; this occurs when a population or group of organisms belonging to the same species, are separated geographically. Over time, the separated groups develop different traits due to environmental differences. In Figure 2a, the grey fish evolved in a lake the receives salt water runoff, they would need to have evolved traits to survive the increased salinity.

“If no such variations exist, the population rapidly goes extinct because it cannot adapt to a changing environment” (O’Neil, 1998-2013). Scientists call this reproductive success. “Within a specific environment context, one genotype will be better than another genotype in survival or reproduction for certain reasons having to do with the way its particular features relate to the environment or relate to other organisms within the population” (Futuyma, 2000-2014). The theory of evolution is explicable through various kinds of scientific research.

Diversity increases in similar habitats across the globe by the process of convergent evolution (Withgott & Brennan, 2011). This occurs when similar environmental conditions existing in different regions of the globe cause organisms to develop very similar characteristics. Examples include the many

Processes were occurring naturally, and the stronger and more adaptive organisms were selected by nature to continue living.

means that not all species share the same suit of traits. They have various characteristics such as

In chapter two, the class learned about natural selection: the primary mechanism of evolution. For example, two types of birds inhabit an island. One type of bird has a strong beak, great for cracking the shells of nuts (the main food source on the island). The other species has a weak, small beak and struggles to find a consistent food source. Eventually, the bird with the smaller beak will die out, and the other birds with the stronger beak will continue to survive. If a gene or characteristic allows an animal to adapt to the environment, then it is considered successful and will be passed on to the next generation. Certain characteristics, such as a strong beak, can allow a species to survive a catastrophe. Another form of an adaptation

One of the most important shifts in evolutionary biology in the past 50 years is an increased recognition of sluggish evolution and failures to adapt, which seem paradoxical in view of abundant genetic variation and many instances of rapid local adapta- tion. I review hypotheses of evolutionary constraint (or restraint), and suggest that although constraints on individual characters or character complexes may often reside in the structure or paucity of genetic variation, organism-wide stasis, as described by paleontologists, might better be explained by a hypothesis of ephemeral divergence, according to which the spatial or temporal divergence of populations is often short-lived because of interbreeding with nondivergent populations. Among

evolution of the species, what adaptive property it provides that would cause it to be selected