Ecosystems – A 4.

1 SL Evolution

Guiding Questions:

“There is overwhelming evidence for the evolution of life on Earth”

Syllabus objectives:

This definition helps to distinguish Darwinian evolution from

Evolution as change in the heritable
A4.1.1 Lamarckism. Acquired changes that are not genetic in origin are
characteristics of a population
not regarded as evolution.
Evidence for evolution from base Sequence data gives powerful evidence of common ancestry.
A4.1.2 sequences in DNA or RNA and amino
acid sequences in proteins
Evidence for evolution from selective Variation between different domesticated animal breeds and
A4.1.3 breeding of domesticated animals varieties of crop plant, and between them and the original wild
and crop plants species, shows how rapidly evolutionary changes can occur.
Evidence for evolution from Include the example of pentadactyl limbs.
A4.1.4
homologous structures
Students should understand that analogous structures have the
Convergent evolution as the origin of
A4.1.5 same function but different evolutionary origins. Students should
analogous structures
know at least one example of analogous features.
Students should appreciate that this is the only way in which new
species have appeared. Students should also understand that
Speciation by splitting of pre-existing
A4.1.6 speciation increases the total number of species on Earth, and
species
extinction decreases it. Students should also understand that
gradual evolutionary change in a species is not speciation.
Include geographical isolation as a means of achieving
Roles of reproductive isolation and reproductive isolation. Use the separation of bonobos and
A4.1.7
differential selection in speciation common chimpanzees by the Congo River as a specific example of
divergence due to differential selection.

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Evolution as change in the heritable characteristics:

Characteristics of populations are changing over time, but these

characteristics must be heritable and not aquired – traits that are
inherited by offspring from parents. The theory of evolution by natural
selection was coined by Charles Darwin and is now well understood.

Before Charles Darwin published his book “On the

Origins of Species” the leading theory for evolution was
based on inheritance of aquired charcteristics, proposed
by Jean-Baptiste Lamarck. This theory was soon refuted.

According to Lamarck, the giraffe got its long neck

because its ancestors stretched theirs to eat leaves that
were just out of reach. This stretching of the neck was
passed on to their offspring, over generations, until it
reached its current length.

In contrast to Lamarck’s ideas on

evolution, Darwin argues that
evolution & variation within a
population occurs due to selection
pressures, which enables orgaisms
that are better adapted to the
environment to survive and pass
on this advantage to future
generations.

Use the two images below and knowledge from before to describe how the theories of evolution by Lamarck
and Darwin were different:

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Evidence for Evolution

It is difficult to “proof” the theory of evolution in the lab, because not only would it involve tracking changes in
the genetic material over a long period of time for changes and speciation, but also to collect data over a very
long timeframe. However, multiple pieces of evidence support the theory of evolution:

List the 3 main pieces of evidence:

Evidence for evolution from base sequences in DNA or RNA:

Look at these made-up base sequences. Which of the 4 species are most closely related?

With evolution being a change in

heritable characteristics, we can
observe changes in the base
sequence of the DNA or RNA
whenever evolution occurs.
Comparing base sequences of
the same gene in different
species sheds light on potential
evolutionary relationships.

By comparing gene sequences which control eye-development (Pax6) in different species, conclusions about
the evolutionary development of vision can be made.

The original Pax gene which is responsible for eye-

development and the eye-building genes of all the
different animal lineages probably evolved more than
500 million years ago. As these descendent lineages
further evolved, the basic eye-building gene was
modified in different ways in the different lineages,
giving rise to the diversity seen in modern animals.

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Evidence for evolution from selective breeding

Selective breeding is a form of selection in which humans actively choose which traits should be passed onto
offspring.
How does selective breeding act as evidence for evolution?

If an animal possesses a characteristic that is considered useful or valuable, then this animal is selected for
breeding. The hope then is that this characteristic will be present in the next generation and at a higher
frequency than before. In subsequent generations it may even then be possible to select from an even more
advantageous characteristic.

Many modern food crops have been created by artificial selection from wild ancestral populations. All types
of cereals shown above have a common ancestor from the family of grasses. What could be some of the
characteristics which have been selected for during the last 8000 years of its cultivation?

Selective breeding provides evidence that

selection can cause evolution, on short geologic
time scale. It does not prove that evolution of
species is occurring naturally but gives evidence
that species can evolve rapidly. Most breeds are
clearly related to wild species and in many
cases can still interbreed with them.

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Evidence for evolution from homologous structures:

Evolution can occur along different pathways and structural analysis in

addition to genetic sequencing provides evidence for the development.

• Structures which have similar anatomy and carry out different

functions are often due to development from a common
ancestor. This is referred to as divergent evolution.

• The evolutionary explanation of structures that have similar

function, but different origins is called convergent evolution.

Homologous structures:

What do you notice about the limbs of these animals?

Limbs of vertebrates are strikingly similar, despite being used in different ways. These structural similarities in
homologous structures have evolved from a common ancestor and are therefore evidence for divergent
evolution. They have similar or the same bones in the same relative positions, but they have become different
because they perform different functions due to different selection pressures (adaptive radiation).
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 The human arms and legs are
pretty similar in bone structure.
The bones have just changed over
time to be selected for different
activities – the hand for grasping
and the foot for walking.

The image shows the skeletons of at least one example of each of the four vertebrate classes that have limbs:
amphibians, reptiles, birds and mammals. Each of them is differently adapted to their method of locomotion.

Outline how the animal uses fore limb and hind limb for the different modes of locomotion:
Forelimb
Hindlimb

Choose a different colour for each type of bone in a pentadactyl limb, then colour the diagrams to identify the
bones. How is each limb used? What features of the bones in each limb make it well adapted to its use? What
could have been the selection pressure which caused the evolutionary development by adaptive radiation?

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 Convergent evolution as the origin of analogous structures:

What are analogous structures and how do they explain for convergent evolution?

How are the images shown above an example for analogous structures? Explain:

Problems in distinguishing
between homologous and
analogous structures have
sometimes led to mistakes in
classification in the past. For this
reason, the morphology (form
and structure) of organisms is
now rarely used for identifying
members of a clade and
evidence from base or amino
acid sequences is trusted more.

Using the table below, distinguish between convergent and divergent evolution:
Convergent evolution Divergent evolution
Similar or different
evolutionary origin?
Analogous or
homologous structures?

Examples

.
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Speciation by splitting of pre-existing species:

Speciation is when species are become different after having been separated from each other for an extended
amount of time. Each species is adapting to the slightly different conditions prevalent, and natural selection will
allow for them to develop in two different ways until they become recognizably different.

Finches on the
Galapagos islands are an
example of speciation.

Watch this video clip (https://youtu.be/mcM23M-CCog ) and answer the questions:

The different varieties of finches on the Galapagos islands have evolved into different species. Is this an example
of convergent or divergent evolution?

Are the different types of beaks examples of analogous or homologous structures?

What acts as a selection pressure on the birds?

Different finch species have beaks of different shapes and sizes. What are these different beak structures
evidence of?

Which examples demonstrate natural selection & subsequent evolution during a relatively short period of time?

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Roles of reproductive isolation in speciation:

Speciation is the formation of a new species

by splitting of an existing one.

Which two processes are required for this? Describe them:

Geographic isolation is a form of

reproductive isolation in which
populations are separated
physically by geographic barriers
such as rivers, mountains or
stretches of water.

Over time, the populations on

either side diverge enough
genetically so that at some point they are not able anymore to interbreed.
In this case, divergence is facilitated by the absence of gene flow, which
would tend to keep populations genetically similar.

Speciation of Chimpanzees and Bonobos:

Bonobos and chimpanzees are both primates from the

genus Pan. They are different species. Look at the map
above. What is the geographical barrier keeping them from
interbreeding?

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