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Biology — Evolution

Core principles of evolutionary theory

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darwin_daily 15 terms Dec 23, 2025
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Terms 15

1
Natural Selection
Mechanism of evolution; organisms with favorable traits survive and reproduce more
2
Adaptation
Inherited trait increasing an organism's fitness in its environment
3
Fitness
Organism's reproductive success relative to others in the population
4
Speciation
Formation of new and distinct species through evolution
5
Allopatric Speciation
New species forms due to geographic isolation
6
Sympatric Speciation
New species forms within same geographic area without isolation
7
Genetic Drift
Random change in allele frequencies; significant in small populations
8
Gene Flow
Transfer of alleles between populations through migration
9
Mutation
Random change in DNA; ultimate source of new genetic variation
10
Hardy-Weinberg Equilibrium
Allele frequencies stable when no evolution occurs; baseline for detecting change
11
Convergent Evolution
Unrelated species evolving similar traits due to similar environments
12
Divergent Evolution
Related species evolving different traits; leads to speciation
13
Homologous Structures
Similar structures in different species from common ancestor; e.g. mammal forelimbs
14
Vestigial Structures
Structures with reduced function; remnants of ancestral traits
15
Phylogenetic Tree
Diagram showing evolutionary relationships among organisms