• Evolution: Descent with modification

Unifying theme of Biology 

It help s u s exp lain the Unity and Diversity of Life on Earth.

What does the word evolution mean?

Change in gene frequency in a population over time

often a gene occurs in a population

Group of a species living in a given area

 What does the theory NOT 
imply? 
n The theory of evolution does not say humans 
came from monkeys 

The theory does point to a common ancestry of all life on

Earth, and that humans and all other forms of life on Earth
share this ancestery
Charles Darwin b. 1809
n Theory of evolution 
by Natural 
Selection, but not 
the first to consider 
organisms evolve
Fossils raised questions about idea that all 
life had been created at once
n Georges Cuvier
n Catastrophism
n
nJean Baptiste Lam arck
nEnvironm ental pressu res,

and inheritance of acqu ired

traits led to change over tim e
How the Giraffe got a long
neck
Lamark’s idea

Inheritance of acquired traits

n Darwin aware of other’s work
n Geologists developing idea of uniformity:
gradual uniform repetitive changes shaped
the Earth. Leads to idea of Earth being
millions of years old
n

n Darwin relates idea to life while on trip

around world
 Route of Darwin’s voyage 
route of
Beagle

EQUATOR

Galapagos
Islands

At age of 22 Darwin was the ship’s naturalist on a 5 year voyage

Around the world.
 The Galapagos Islands are about 400 miles off
Darwin
The coast of Ecuador. While visiting the islands
Wolf For food, Darwin notices different adaptations
Present in finches and tortoises on different
islands

Pinta

Genovesa
Marchena

Santiago
Bartolomé

Baltra
Rabida
Fernandia Santa Cruz
Pinzon

Santa Fe
San Cristobal
Isabela Tortuga

Floreana
Española
n “The inhabitants….state that they can distinguish
the tortoises from the different islands; and
that they differ not only in size but in other
characters.”
n - Charles Darwin, 1845
n
“Darwin’s Finches”
 Darwin’s theory of evolution by
natural selection 
n

n Organisms produce more offspring than survive

n
nThere is variation among individuals in a population
nSome variations are helpful
nThose with the most helpful variations survive to
produce more offspring
nHelpful variations increase in the population
Nature selects which variations are helpful and
which are not
Which variation would be helpful
to the individual desert rabbit?
Alfred Wallace develops same idea studying
insects in Borneo and other Indonesian
Islands
n Alfred Wallace
independently develops
very similar idea and
writes to Darwin
n Wallace’s paper and
Darwin’s jointly
presented at a
scientific meeting in
London
 What evidence exists to support
the theory of evolution?
In science a theory is supported by data
which is different from the common use of
the term
The theory of evolution has
evidence to support it
otherwise it would still be a
hypothesis
 n Indicate life has
Fossils  changed over time
nDeepest layers of rock hold
the oldest specimens.
nOlder fossils more simple
forms of life
nOffer evidence of ancestral
forms of organisms

nIncomplete

nHard to die right

nUsually soft tissues not fossilized
Transitional forms : “missing links” fossils that show
characteristics of two different groups of animals
Tiktaalik roseae
Tiktaalik roseae: Transitional form between land animals and fish
Fossil discovered in 2004

Why leave the water?

Great moments in evolution
Great Moments in Evolution
 Archeopteryx
Feathers ! Fossilized early bird
With reptile
characteristics
Bony jaw

Teeth
Claws on forelimbs

Bones in tail

Why is it considered
a bird?
Vestigial
Structures
backbone

Structures
that are pelvic girdle
not
functional
in an coccyx (bones
where many
organism, other mammals
but have a tail)

functional thighbone
attached to
in related pelvic girdle
species small bone
attached to
pelvic girdle
 1 early reptile
2
3
4
5
21
3
pterosaur

4 1
chicken
2
3
1
2
bat

3 4 1
5
porpoise
2 4
3 5

penguin
2
1 3
2
3 human
4
5
Similar Vertebrate Embryos

n Alterations that disrupted early

development have been selected against

FISH REPTILE BIRD Human

Comparative Biochemistry
n Kinds and numbers of biochemical
traits that species share is a clue
to how closely they are related
n Can compare DNA, RNA, or
proteins
n More similarity means species are
more closely related
 Comparing Proteins
n Compare amino acid sequence of proteins
produced by the same gene
n Human cytochrome c (a protein)
n Identical amino acids in chimpanzee
protein
n Chicken protein differs by 18 amino acids
n Yeast protein differs by 56
n Cytochrome c functions in electron
transport
n Deficits in this vital protein would be
lethal
n Long sequences are identical in wheat,
yeast, and a primate
Cytochrome C Amino Acid Sequence
yeast
wheat
primate
 Nucleic Acid Comparison

n Use single-stranded DNA or RNA

n Hybrid molecules are created, then
heated
n The more heat required to break
hybrid, the more closely related
the species
 Observation of populations
evolving
n Antibiotic resistance in bacteria
nPesticide resistance in insects
nPopulations of finches in the Galapagos
How Does Evolution 
Happen?
Mechanisms of Evolution
Evolution acts on populations

Microevolution is generation to generation changes in

the gene frequency of a population

n All of the genes in 
a population at 
one time is 
called a gene 
pool. 
 What is a population?

Members of the same species living in a local area

Least Tern

Populations of Least Terns in US

Mutations 
n Only source of brand 
new genes in a 
population .
n Spontaneous and 
Random
n Rare, but still 
important
n Often make no 
difference
Genetic Drift

n Bottle neck­
n Only a few 
individuals in a 
population 
survive, and 
reduces genetic 
diversity in 
Not a benefit to the
future 
Populationgenerations 
n
Genetic Drift can also happen 
through the founder effect
n This happens when a few individuals from a 
population colonize a new habitat.
n What would be the most extreme example of this?
n
 Natural 
Selection 
n Individuals in a population vary, and some 
individuals produce more offspring than others
n DIFFERENTIAL REPRODUCTION
n The key to natural selection ! 
 Types of Natural Selection

n Directional
n Favors 
individuals 
with one 
extreme of a 
variation
 Stabilizing selection

n Selects for the mid 
value in a variation
 20 100
70
50
percent of population

15
30

percent mortality
20
10
10

5
5 3
2

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11
birth weight (pounds)
 Diversifying selection
n Selects for individuals on both extremes of a 
variation 

Black bellied seed crackers. Do you see the variation ?

 Sexual Selection
n Selects for variations that make it most likely 
an individual will reproduce
What traits could be from 
sexual selection?
Female and calf

Bull elk
Elk Antler
Moose antler
 Other examples of sexual 
selection

male bison male weaver bird

male and female land iguanas Male frigate bird

Gene Flow: Migration of genes from one population to another

Over time reduces

differences between
populations
 So Can Evolution lead to 
perfect species?
n No

Not all evolution is adaptive
nRandom events affect the genetic structure of
populations

nNatural selection only selects from what is

available
nNew genes can’t be created by natural

selection
 The Origin of 
Species and 
Macroevolution
 Macroevolution is the 
formation of new species, 
populations, Kingdoms etc. 
 
OR the extinction of any of 
these groups
New species can form in two 
ways
n Anagenesis 
 (Ana means up in 
Greek)
n Transformation of 
one species into 
another
Cladogenesis (clado means 
branching) 
n Branching evolution 
n A new species arises 
from an existing 
population.
n Cladogenesis brings 
about biology 
diversity
What is a species?

n Species means kind 
or appearance in 
Latin
n Biological species is 
a group of 
individuals which 
can interbreed 
and produce 
fertile offspring
What keeps a species isolated 
from other species?
n Prezygotic Barriers
n Hinder mating 
between 
different 
species
n Behavioral 
isolation
n Habitat isolation
n Temporal 
isolation
n Mechanical 
isolation
n
 Post Zygotic Barriers
n

If a sperm cell from one species is able to penetrate the egg of

another other mechanisms can prevent the development of
a fertile adult.

Hybrids have reduced viability

Hybrids are not fertile
Hybrid Breakdown
future generations produced by hybrids breeding with
Each other or back to parental generations produce weak offspring
Formation of new species due to geographic 
isolation is called 
Allopatric speciation
n In allopatric speciation, a new species 
forms while geographically isolated 
from its ancestor. 
Harris’s antelope squirrel lives just a few miles away from the
white-tailed antelope squirrel. Yet they are geographically isolated

By the
 Sympatric Speciation occurs 
within a population with no 
geographic isolation
n The isolation is Reproductive 
n This type of speciation is most common in 
plants
Some plant species have their origins in accidents during
cell division that result in extra sets of chromosomes, a
mutant condition called polyploidy.
Allopolyploids occur when two different, but related species
Interbreed. This is also most common in plants.