EVOLUTION

VARIATION
Variations are phenotypic differences between organisms that arise due to
genetic variation and the environment. Genetic variations arises from:

❏ Meiosis
❏ Sexual reproduction
❏ Mutations - A mutation is a change in a gene or chromosomal structure.
Mutations that occur in gamete DNA are inherited.
MUTAGENIC SUBSTANCES
Mutations can arise during DNA
replication, or due to mutagens such
as ultraviolet radiation, X-rays,
gamma rays, food preservatives,
benzene, and nitrous acid.

Food, drugs, temperature, and light

can cause variation in living
organisms, but these traits are not
passed into offspring as they do not
affect germline genes.
 IMPORTANCE OF VARIATION
Variation is important because:

❏ It enables species to adapt to changing environmental conditions,

improving their chances of survival.
❏ It provides the raw material on which natural selection can work, and for
species to evolve.
❏ It prevents an entire species from being going extinct.
 CONTINUOUS VARIATION
In continuous variation,
characteristics show a
continuous gradation from one
extreme to the other without a
break, and most organisms fall
in the middle of the range.

Examples include height, skin

colour, intelligence, leaf size, and
weight.
 DISCONTINUOUS VARIATION
In discontinuous variation, characteristics show distinct differences with
no intermediates. Individuals can be divided into distinct categories
Examples include flower colour, ABO blood types, tongue rolling, and the
presence or absence of horns in cattle.
 SPECIATION
Speciation is the formation of new species. A species is a group of
organisms that closely resemble each other and are capable of
interbreeding to produce fertile offspring.
 STERILE HYBRIDS
When two different species do
reproduce, their offspring are
reproductively sterile (e.g. liger,
mule).
 SPECIATION
Speciation can occur by:

❏ Geographic (allopatric) speciation: A geographical barrier that separates a

population and prevents them from breeding.
❏ Reproductive (sympatric) speciation: A population in the same geographical
location diverges into separate species due to ecological, behavioural, and
reproductive isolation.
 GALAPAGOS FINCHES
A population that is geographically isolated from another may adapt to the different
environmental conditions they experience. Over time, the isolated population would
become more different from the original population and become a new species.
 NATURAL SELECTION
The differential survival of, and reproduction by organisms best fitted to the
environment is known as natural selection. Evolution is the change in genetic
material of a population from one generation to the next. The theory of natural
selection is based on the following:

● More offspring are produced than needed.

● All of the offspring show variation
● Only organisms possessing variations that make them well adapted to their
environment survive and pass on their advantageous characteristics to their
offspring.

Natural selection normally preserves useful adaptations as advantageous

characteristics are more frequently passed on. Genetic variation is necessary for
natural selection.
 SELECTION PRESSURES
Selection pressures affect an organism’s
ability to survive in a given environment.
Types of selection pressures include:

■ Resource availability – Food, habitat,

and mates
■ Environmental conditions –
Temperature, weather conditions or
geographical access
■ Biological factors – Predators and
pathogens
 STABILIZING SELECTION
Stabilising (purifying) selection decreases the variation of a population
as a particular trait stabilizes.
 DISRUPTIVE SELECTION
Disruptive selection favours individuals at both extremes
of the distribution.
 DIRECTIONAL SELECTION
Directional selection favours those individuals who have extreme
variations in traits within a population.
 THE PEPPERED MOTH
The light-colored peppered moth was originally camouflage on the
lichen-covered trees they rested on. During the industrial revolution, pollution
darkened the bottom of the trees. The pale moths were now easily seen by
predators, but the rare dark-colored form was better camouflaged. The
frequency of the dark form increased as they were better suited to the
environment.
 ANTIBIOTIC RESISTANCE
When antibiotics are used, any bacteria with genes to resist the drug will
survive and the rest will be killed. These resistant organisms have a
selective advantage. The resistant bacteria then multiply by binary fission,
producing identical populations of antibiotic-resistant bacteria.
ANOLIS LIZARDS
Through natural selection, the
Anolis lizards have colonised
Caribbean islands from Central
and South America and
independently evolved into
different species with similar
characteristics that enabled
them to fit similar ecological
niches on each island.
This is called adaptive radiation.
 ARTIFICIAL SELECTION
Artificial selection involves humans selecting and breeding organisms
showing desirable characteristics. Selective breeding is used extensively
in agriculture to produce crop plants and farm animals with:
❏ Increased yields (chickens that lay more or larger eggs)
❏ Increased quality of product (cereals with a higher protein content)
❏ Faster growth rates.
❏ Increased number of offspring.
❏ Resistance to pests and disease
❏ Increased suitability to the environment
 ARTIFICIAL SELECTION IN THE CARIBBEAN
Jamaica Hope, a breed of dairy cattle, is
heat tolerant, has a high resistance to ticks
and tick borne diseases, and produces a
high yield of milk, even when grazing on the
poor pasture lands of the Caribbean.

Sugar cane has been bred to produce varieties

with a high sucrose content, increased
resistance to disease and insecticides, greater
suitability to its environment and improved
ratooning ability.
THE END : )