Evolution and Natural

Selection

How species change

over time
 Evolution and Natural
Selection
 Genetic variations are passed on
through reproduction
 Evidence for evolution illustrates how
organisms are related
 Natural selection leads to evolution
 Our understanding of evolution has
changed over time
 Evolution
 The theory that
organisms today
developed from more
simple life forms and
have changed (evolved)
over time.
 Natural Selection
 The theory that states
that those organisms
best adapted to their
environment have a
better chance of
surviving and reproducing.
 Evolution
Pre-Darwin Beliefs
 Earth was only a few thousand years
old.
 We now know it is billions of years
old.
 Neither the planet nor the species
that inhabited it had changed since
the beginning of time.
 We now know the planet has changed
 Evolution
Pre-Darwin Beliefs
 Jean Pierre Lamark believed that organisms
can change their traits during their lifetime
by use or disuse.
 He thought that these traits are passed on
to offspring. Over time this would cause
change in a species.
 Lamark was wrong
Charles Darwin
1809 - 1882
 Scientist credited with the
Theory of Evolution & Natural
Selection

 Voyage of the HMS Beagle –

 a 5 year voyage to South

America and the South Pacific,
collecting specimens, making
observations and keeping a
scientific journal of his findings.
 Voyage of the Beagle
What did Darwin find?
 The finches on each island in the Galapagos
had different types of beaks.
 Voyage of the Beagle
What did Darwin find?

The tortoises on each island in the

Galapagos had different types of
shells.
 What was Darwin’s
hypothesis?
 Darwin
hypothesized that
organisms had a
common ancestor,
but had adapted
to their particular
environments and
changed over time.
 Darwin published
his
research in 1859
 Natural Selection
 For natural selection to occur,
there must be at least two
varieties of a species.
 For example: the peppered moth
 Peppered Moths
 At the beginning of the Industrial
Revolution in England, coal burning
produced soot that covered the
countryside in many areas
What do you think
happened?
 Evolution/Natural Selection
 White moths became
easier to see, while
the black moths
became harder to see.
The black moths were
more likely to survive
and pass on the gene
for dark color to their
offspring.
 Over time, the black
moths
have become more
 Evidence for Evolution:
Common Ancestry
 Common Ancestry: If species
evolved from a common ancestor,
then they should share common
anatomical traits
 Hawaiian Honeycreeper: family of
birds in Hawaii that have similar
skeletons and muscles, indicating
they are closely related.
 Over time, their common ancestor
evolved
into several species, each with a
specialized bill for eating
certain foods. Just like Darwin’s
 Evidence for Evolution:
Homologous Structures
 If animals evolved
from a common
ancestor, then they
should share
common structures –
and they do!
 These are called
homologous
structures
 Evidence for Evolution
Embryo Development
 What do you notice? List 2
observations
 Evidence for Evolution:
Vestigial Organs
 Some organisms have structures
or organs that no longer have a
useful function.
 These structures or organs may
have been useful to the ancestors
of a species, but over time have
evolved into what we term
vestigial organs.
 Examples of Vestigial
Organs
 Kiwi (flightless bird)

 Whales (hind leg bones)

 Humans (tailbone, appendix)

 Evidence for Evolution
Fossils
 Fossils provide a
look
into the past
 Scientists can trace
how
a species has
evolved
by studying fossils
 Wrap Up the Evidence
 Common Ancestry
 Homologous Structures

 Vestigial Organs

 Embryonic Development

 Fossils