Macroevolution & Speciation|Complete Questions with
Verified A+ Graded Rationales Latest Updated 2026
Macroevolution
Evolutionary change above the species level.
Ecological species concept
identifies species in terms of their ecological niches, focusing on unique adaptations to
particular roles in a biological community
Postzygotic
Barriers that prevent the hybrid zygote from becoming a fertile adult.
The theory of gradualism
Profound geological changes took place through the cumulative effect of slow but continuous
processes identical to those currently operating
Prezyogotic
Reproductive isolation
Artificial selection
Breeding organisms with specific traits in order to produce offspring with identical traits.
Microevolution
Change in allele frequencies in a population over generations.
Biological species concept
Definition of a species as a population or group of populations whose members have the
potential to interbreed in nature and produce viable, fertile offspring, but are not able to
produce viable, fertile offspring with members of other populations.
Population
A local group of organisms belonging to the same species and capable of interbreeding
According to evolutionary theory, the smallest entity that can evolve is
*evolve over time
, Quantitative
Characters (such as height) are those that vary along a continuum within a population.
Homologous
Structures in different species that are similar because of common ancestry.
Gene flow
Movement of alleles into or out of a population due to the migration of individuals to or from
the population
Stabilizing
Natural selection that favors intermediate variants by acting against extreme phenotypes
Disruptive Selection
form of natural selection in which a single curve splits into two; occurs when individuals at the
upper and lower ends of a distribution curve have higher fitness than individuals near the
middle
Prokaryotic
Single celled organism
Gradualism
Occurrence over a period of time
Eukaryotic
Multicellular organism
Speciation
Genetic changes over time
Phylogeny
Classification of organisms
Anaerobes
Do not require oxygen to live
Creationism
Religious viewpoint