Evidence of Evolution

Geological Evolution
- The Earths surface is always __________________________________.
- Theory of Plate Tectonics: continents used to be one large landmass and
have since shifted apart.
- Fossils of ___________________________found on mountains suggest they
used to be underwater.
Biological Evolution
- Life on Earth is also always changing.
- Evolution: ___________________________________________________
o Traits passed down from one generation to the next and they slowly
change over time.
- Evidence
o ___________________
- Genetics
o Comparative anatomy
- ___________________________
o Embryology
Early Ideas
Charles Darwin
- Took a 5-year voyage around the world to develop his theory.
- Natural Selection: members of a species _______________________ to an
environment will reproduce at a ___________________________ and pass
on those traits to the next generation. This leads to changes over time.
- Most of his evidence taken from turtles and _________________on
Galapagos Islands.
Finches
- Adapted with the size of their ________________ depending on the
_______________________ on different islands.
Evidence for Evolution
Fossils
- Comparing fossils over time shows that there is a connection between
species ___________________________________________________.
Mass extinctions
- Huge numbers of organisms go extinct at the ________________________
- Cretaceous extinction
o 65 million years ago, ____________________________________
o Scientists think meteor hit somewhere in Mexico
- ___________________________________________________________
- Dinosaurs died out, leaving room for hairy mammals to adapt to the cold of
the ice age.

Comparative Anatomy
- Comparing the _____________________________ of todays animals and
those in the fossil record
- Homologous structures: body parts that have the same _________________
but different ______________________. This suggests a common ancestor.
- Vestigial organs: structures that no longer have a function but would have in
ancestors.
o Human appendix and wisdom teeth
o ____________________________________
- Analogous structures: body parts with the same ____________________ but
different ___________________. These do not suggest a common ancestor.
o Bat wind and insect wing
Embryology
- Many different species that are not closely related have very similar
embryos.
- __________________________________________________________
Genetic Evidence
- Scientist can now examine the _________________ of organisms and have
noticed similarities in organisms from the past and today.
- The more genetic code two species share the more closely related they are.
o Humans and chimpanzees share _____________________________
Biological Classification
- Classification, also called taxonomy, is ____________________________
____________________________________________________________
- There are six kingdoms of classification
o Animalia
o _____________________
o Fungi
o _____________________
o Eubacteria

o Archaebacteria