Speciation Vs. Divergent Evolution

To understand speciation, we first have to understand evolution. Simply putting it, evolution is the change of a species through many generations. Many things change, such as leaves falling off trees in the fall however, biological evolution is important because it is the changes that are genetically inherited through generations. These changes are also known as adaptations and help species increase their fitness(their ability to survive and reproduce). When looking at evolution, there is small-scale evolution and large-scale evolution. Changes in the gene frequency in a population from one generation to the next is known as small-scale and the descent of different species from a common ancestor over many generations is known as large-scale.

Divergent evolution is the process in which two species evolve from one common ancestor, in this case speciation. Whereas, convergent evolution is when two different species evolve into two very similar species. A common example of divergent evolution is the successful process of speciation when two species live among each other even though they originated from the same species. On the other hand, a failed process of speciation is an example of convergent evolution because now throughout many generations, the two different species will become one as they mate and produce more similar offspring each year. Both convergent and divergent evolution involve changes in species which result in a new species. The only difference is that they are reversed. One(convergent evolution) results in the creation of a new, similar species, whereas the other(divergent evolution) results in the creation of two, different species. These two types of evolution also help to contribute to the three different types of speciation. These are known as allopatric, parapatric, and sympatric

This makes it impossible for the two groups to breed with one another and leads to two new species because each group will adapt differently based on their habitat. The second type of speciation is called parapatric speciation. This occurs when a species is spread over a large region in which different parts of the region have different environments. Although individuals within the species are able to breed with each other, they choose to mate with others close to them. Over time, these choices create separate species because different environments lead to different adaptations. If enough time passes, individuals that were once part of a large species will not be able to mate with each other if they migrate to an area of their region because others from the area will have already adapted and created different offspring than the original species. The last type of speciation is sympatric speciation, which is debated whether it is true or not. It is when a new species forms from an existing one without the presence of a physical barrier or a distance barrier. The only reasoning behind this is that some individuals might rely on different aspects of their environment more than others. For example, one group from a species might depend on a cave for shelter whereas another group depends on deep ravine for