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Evolution and
Biodiversity
Chapter Overview Questions
How do scientists account for the
development of life on earth?
What is biological evolution by natural
selection, and how can it account for the
current diversity of organisms on the earth?
How can geologic processes, climate change
and catastrophes affect biological evolution?
What is an ecological niche, and how does it
help a population adapt to changing the
environmental conditions?
Chapter Overview Questions (cont’d)
How do extinction of species and formation
of new species affect biodiversity?
What is the future of evolution, and what role
should humans play in this future?
How did we become such a powerful species
in a short time?
Updates Online
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Figure 4-2
Chemical Evolution Biological Evolution
(1 billion years) (3.7 billion years)
Fig. 4-2, p. 84
Biological
Evolution
Figure 4-2
Modern humans (Homo
sapiens sapiens) appear
about 2 seconds before
midnight
Age of Recorded human history
Age of
mammals begins about 1/4 second
reptiles before midnight
Insects and
amphibians
invade the Origin of life
land
(3.6-3.8 billion
years ago)
First fossil
record of
animals
Plants
begin
invading
land Evolution and
expansion of life
Fig. 4-3, p. 84
How Do We Know Which Organisms
Lived in the Past?
Our knowledge
about past life
comes from fossils,
chemical analysis,
cores drilled out of
buried ice, and DNA
analysis.
Figure 4-4
EVOLUTION, NATURAL
SELECTION, AND ADAPTATION
Biological evolution by natural selection
involves the change in a population’s genetic
makeup through successive generations.
genetic variability
Mutations: random changes in the structure or
number of DNA molecules in a cell that can be
inherited by offspring.
Natural Selection and Adaptation:
Leaving More Offspring With
Beneficial Traits
Three conditions are necessary for biological
evolution:
Genetic variability, traits must be heritable, trait
must lead to differential reproduction.
An adaptive trait is any heritable trait that
enables an organism to survive through
natural selection and reproduce better under
prevailing environmental conditions.
Coevolution: A Biological Arms Race
Fig. 4-5, p. 88
Climate Change and Natural
Selection
Changes in climate throughout the earth’s
history have shifted where plants and
animals can live.
Figure 4-6
18,000 Northern Hemisphere Modern day
years before Ice coverage (August)
present
Note:
Modern
sea ice
coverage
represents
Legend summer
Continental ice months
Sea ice
Land above sea level
Fig. 4-6, p. 89
Catastrophes and Natural Selection
Figure 4-7
Specialist species Generalist species
with a narrow niche with a broad niche
Niche
Number of individuals
separation
Niche
breadth
Region of
niche overlap
Resource use
Fig. 4-7, p. 91
SPOTLIGHT
Cockroaches: Nature’s Ultimate
Survivors
350 million years old
3,500 different species
Ultimate generalist
Can eat almost anything.
Can live and breed almost
anywhere.
Can withstand massive
radiation.
Figure 4-A
Specialized Feeding Niches
Figure 4-8
Avocet sweeps bill through
mud and surface water in
search of small crustaceans,
Ruddy
insects, and seeds
Herring gull is a turnstone
tireless scavenger searches
Brown pelican under shells
dives for fish, and pebbles
which it locates Dowitcher probes deeply for small
Black skimmer
from the air into mud in search of invertebrates
seizes small fish
at water surface snails, marine worms,
and small crustaceans
Figure 4-9
Fruit and seed eaters Insect and nectar eaters
Greater Koa-finch
Kuai Akialaoa
Amakihi
Kona Grosbeak
Crested Honeycreeper
Akiapolaau
Northern
population
Spreads Different environmental
Early fox northward conditions lead to different
Population and southward selective pressures and
and separates evolution into two different
species.
Southern Adapted to
Population heat through
lightweight
fur and long
Gray Fox ears, legs,
and nose,
which give
off more
heat.
Fig. 4-10, p. 92
Extinction: Lights Out
Extinction occurs
when the
population
cannot adapt to
changing
environmental
conditions.
The golden toad of Costa Rica’s
Monteverde cloud forest has
become extinct because of
changes in climate.
Figure 4-11
Species and families
Era Period Millions of Bar width represents relative experiencing
Cenozoic years ago number of living species mass extinction
Quaternary Today Extinction Current extinction crisis caused
by human activities. Many species
Tertiary are expected to become extinct
Extinction within the next 50–100 years.
65
Cretaceous: up to 80% of ruling
Cretaceous reptiles (dinosaurs); many marine
species including many
Mesozoic
Ordovician Extinction
500 Ordovician: 50% of animal
Cambrian families, including many
trilobites.
Fig. 4-12, p. 93
Effects of Humans on Biodiversity
Pre-cambrian
Cambrian
Ordovician
Silurian
Devonian
Carboniferous
Permian
Jurassic
Millions of years ago
Devonian
Cretaceous
Tertiary
Quaternary
Fig. 4-13, p. 94
Terrestrial
organisms
Marine
organisms
GENETIC ENGINEERING AND THE
FUTURE OF EVOLUTION
We have used artificial selection to change
the genetic characteristics of populations with
similar genes through selective breeding.
We have used
genetic engineering
to transfer genes
from one species to
another.
Figure 4-15
Genetic Engineering:
Genetically Modified Organisms (GMO)
GMOs use
recombinant
DNA
genes or portions
of genes from
different
organisms.
Figure 4-14
Phase 1
Make Modified Gene E. coli
Plasmid
Gene of DNA
interest
Identify and Remove Insert extracted
Identify and plasmid Grow in tissue
remove portion (step 2) into plasmid
extract gene from DNA of culture to
of DNA with (step 3)
with desired trait E. coli make copies
desired trait
Fig. 4-14, p. 95
Phase 2
Make Transgenic Cell
E. Coli A. tumefaciens Foreign DNA
(agrobacterium) Host DNA
Plant cell
Nucleus
Fig. 4-14, p. 95
Phase 3
Grow Genetically Engineered Plant
Transgenic cell
from Phase 2
Cell division of
transgenic cells
Culture cells
to form plantlets
Transfer
to soil
Transgenic plants
with new traits
Fig. 4-14, p. 95
Phase 3
Grow Genetically Transgenic cell
Engineered Plant from Phase 2
Cell division of
transgenic cells
Culture cells
to form plantlets
Transfer to soil
Transgenic plants
with new traits Stepped Art
Fig. 4-14, p. 95
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