ipl-logo

Speciation Vs. Divergent Evolution

1356 Words6 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Importances of 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. …show more content…

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 …show more content…

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

Show More
Related
988 Words | 4 Pages

The modern humans gained many beneficial traits to help them as they explored into new environments - and may not have survived without the help of the hybridisation. On the other hand, there is not enough fossil evidence of the interbreeding between species, which could suggest that the two species did not interbreed often or when they did interbreed they did not produce

Read More
1515 Words | 7 Pages

These relationships include competition (negative interactions that occurs among organisms whenever two or more organisms require the same limited resource), predation (biological interactions where a predator feeds on its prey), herbivory (when animals eat plants or plant-like organisms), symbiosis (when two or more species live in direct contact with one another), and facilitation (species interactions that benefit at least one of the participants and cause harm to neither). These interactions between and within populations also influence patterns of species distribution and abundance that are discussed in chapter 40. One factor that greatly contributes to the global distribution of organisms is dispersal, the movement of individuals away from their birthplace or center of high population density to their breeding site. There are three main patterns of dispersal: clumped, uniform, and random spacing. Dispersal is key in understanding geographic isolation in evolution as well as the broad patterns of species distribution that occur in the world

Read More
294 Words | 2 Pages

These new environments made possible the evolution of nonhuman primates, and influenced the evolutionary path of primates. Three common theories of early primate evolution are the Arboreal Hypothesis, the Visual Predation

Read More
310 Words | 2 Pages

As seen by looking at the geologic time scale it is clear that different environments allow for different evolution to occur. The three theories

Read More
195 Words | 1 Pages

climate change influenced nonhuman primate evolution because with the changes, nonhuman primates were forced to evolve in order to survive. As the climate change progressed and several species started to die out, nonhuman primates evolved through time and thus they were able to survive and climate change that occurred and were able to evolve into creatures that we see during present times. The theories of early primate evolution appeared about 60 million years ago after most of the early living species had already become extinct. New discoveries have supported one theory over another as more research is done.

Read More
588 Words | 3 Pages

What is convergent and divergent evolution? Whether the trait is a result of convergent or divergent evolution. Chimpanzee, gorilla, human all have in common prehensile hands unlike the other mammals. Describe what makes this trait an adaptation Primitive primates were quadrupeds just like the bear in the past but with time they started developing prehensilehands thatallow them to pick fruit, use stones for crushing nuts and kills insects and small animals for food. As some stop living in the trees their hands started developing fully into the hands human have today.

Read More
1347 Words | 6 Pages

Organisms can evolve to enhance their ability to catch prey, or flee predators. Coevolution occurs in a predator-prey relationship when the prey evolves in response to pressures exerted by its predator. The predator then evolves in response to the changes in the prey (or vice versa). Inheritable adaptive traits evolve through natural selection, the process by which organisms that have developed favorable traits are capable of surviving and reproducing at greater rates, thus passing their adaptive traits to their offspring. Birds and caterpillars have a predator-prey

Read More
559 Words | 3 Pages

Yet another way it is obvious that artificial and natural selection are not directly analogous is through studying the evolution of beings in the context of geological distribution. Darwin attributes the differences and similarities between various species, not to the climate or physical conditions of the regions, but rather to the barriers, or lack thereof, which separate regions from one another (Darwin, pg. 346). Geological barriers are what determine the ease or difficulty in which species can migrate form are to area. For example, oceans are large barriers that make it difficult for terrestrial beings to spread to different continents, whereas the continents can prevent sea life from spreading to different oceans. Darwin describes this phenomena by comparing Australia, South Africa, and parts of South America as having almost identical living conditions, but “it would not be possible to

Read More
191 Words | 1 Pages

Sympatric speciation is one of the most controversial subjects involving speciation due to the fact that speciation was understood as having isolated barriers between a population. This isolation results in lack of gene flow, allowing the population to evolve independent of one another. A key element in distinguishing sympatric speciation from other forms of speciation, is that speciation is occurring without geographic isolation and are able to come in physical contact with one another, which allows inbreeding and gene flow amongst the two diverging groups. Sympatric speciation can be difficult to observe and could be influenced by opposing factors making the outcome of populations difficult to predict. Providing evidence that sympatric speciation

Read More
492 Words | 2 Pages

This period is known for an incredible evolutionary burst that occurred during its time. This is known as the Cambrian Explosion (3). This is when many major groups of animals first appear in fossil record (5). One type of animal that evolved during this time period is the chordates (1). These include vertebrates, which humans belong to.

Read More
1522 Words | 7 Pages

Being misunderstood can be very difficult for a group trying to change the world for the better. Sadly, this occurs more often than not. These misunderstandings can take many forms but are most commonly known as stereotypes, or just blatant misconceptions. When this happens, it can give a person or even a group an ill reputation. It can be so severe, to even cause people to lose their job if affiliated with a group that has a poor misconception or stereotype.

Read More
244 Words | 1 Pages

As a biology student, evolution was one of the first topics covered in my introductory biology classes at ASU. When I have been taught evolution it almost always begins with a tale about Darwin, the Galapagos Islands, and those magical finches. Using Darwin’s discovery, terms such as mutation, genetic drift, and adaptation were introduced to me. The basic consensus of evolution that I have gained from these biology courses is that species adapt to their environment in ways that allows them to survive more successfully. This ability to survive more effectively, allows these species to procreate more.

Read More
705 Words | 3 Pages

Speciation is the long process of a species of animals or plants evolving from the original species. Speciation is something that can diversify a species to the point where they might be considered as two totally different species. There are four different types of speciation. The first is allopatric speciation. This is when a species is separated by as geological change, the word “allo’ means different and the word “patric” mean country which shows that allopatric literally means a different country.

Read More
899 Words | 4 Pages

(Gonzalez) Species have the ability to have multiple offspring and reproduce quickly, gives them the ability to have a large number of their species and gives them a higher chance to dominant their

Read More
1126 Words | 5 Pages

Introduction The theory of evolution has been discussed, evaluated, and researched many times since the theory was first brought to light. Darwin’s theory of evolution is said to be divided into two parts, common decent and natural selection (Bouzat, 2014). Many research papers agreeing with Darwin’s theory comment on the diversity of a species and how they have descended from one common ancestor. Natural selection is a process in which species that are better adapted to the environment tend to survive and reproduce (Dictonary.com).

Read More

More about Speciation Vs. Divergent Evolution

Related Topics

Open Document