Evolution Vocab Latest 2023 100% Correct

Evolution Vocab Latest 2023 100% Correct Vestigial structures The wings of flightless birds, like the ostrich, are an example of this Biochemistry Study of nucleic acids and proteins to show evolutionary relationships Gene flow Migration Adaptation A physical trait that increases an organisms ability to survive in its environment Mass extinction Sudden elimination of a species due to a catastrophic event Punctuated equilibrium Rapid evolutionary change Descent with modification Biological change over time that causes descendants to be different from their ancestors Evolution Principle of natural selection that explains how beneficial traits should become more common over time, causing a change in allelic frequencies Homologous structures Body structures that are similar in orientation, but completely different in function due to organisms living in different environments Embryology Study of embryological development in vertebrates that has led to support the theory of common ancestry among vertebrates Coevolution When to organisms, such as predator and prey, evolve in response to one another Sexual selection When traits that favor reproduction, even though they may decrease an organisms ability to survive, become more common over time Genetic equilibrium When allelic frequencies are stable and unchanging, therefore evolution is not occurring Speciation When isolation, such as geographically, causes two populations of organisms to become so different that they can no longer reproduce with each other and create viable offspring Paleontology The study of prehistoric life that allows scientists to make connections between current and extinct species Divergent evolution Evolution that results in the formation of homologous structures Convergent evolution Evolution that results in the formation of analogous structures Gene pool All of the genes available in a population Gradualism Slow change in allele frequencies over long periods of time Natural selection Organisms with traits that make them better adapted to their environment will live longer and reproduce more than organisms less adapted to the environment Anatomy Study of body structures to provide evidence of evolution Fossil Remnants of organisms such as imprints, bones, and feces Gradual extinction Slow elimination of species caused by small environmental changes over extended periods of time Analogous structures Similar body structures, such as fins, due to organisms living in the same environment, not same ancestry Biogeography Study of the physical distribution of plants and animals