Download Chapter 22: Descent with Modification: A Darwinian View of Life

Chapter 22: Descent with Modification: A Darwinian View of Life
You Must Know
 How Lamark’s view of the mechanism of evolution differed from Darwin’s.
 Several examples of evidence for evolution.
 The difference between structures that are homologous and those that are analogous, and how this relates to evolution.
 The role of adaptations, variation, time, reproductive success, and heritability in evolution.
Vocabulary
adaptation
gradualism
artificial selection
homologous structures
biogeography
homology
catastrophism
natural selection
descent with modification
taxonomy
endemic
uniformitarianism
evolution
vestigial organ
Reading Questions
1. Explain the mechanism for evolutionary change proposed by Charles Darwin in On the Origin of Species.
2. What was Lamarck’s theory of evolution? Explain its significance.
3. Describe how Darwin’s observations on the voyage of the HMS Beagle led him to formulate and support his theory of evolution.
4. Explain what Darwin meant by “descent with modification.”
5. Describe the three inferences Darwin made from his observations that led him to propose natural selection as a mechanism for
evolutionary change.
6. Explain how an essay by the Rev. Thomas Malthus influenced Charles Darwin.
7. Distinguish between artificial selection and natural selection.
8. List the three subtle but important points about evolution by natural selection listed in the text.
9. Describe the experiments that supported Reznick and Endler’s hypothesis that differences in life-history traits between guppy
populations are due to selective pressure based on predation.
10. Explain how the existence of homologous and vestigial structures can be explained by Darwin’s theory of natural selection.
11. Explain how evidence from biogeography supports the theory of evolution by natural selection.
After Thoughts
12. Explain why modern biology has rejected Lamarck’s theories.
13. Explain why an individual organism cannot evolve.
14. Explain how the fossil record can be used to test predictions of evolutionary theory.
15. Explain why the following statement is inaccurate: “Anti-HIV drugs have created drug resistance in the virus.”