What is natural selection?
Natural selection in action: the Peppered moth Show
A pale peppered moth on an oak tree. Image credit: Shutterstock
A pale peppered moth on a dark tree. What have genes got to do with it?
Different types of evolutionConvergent evolution
Co-evolution
Adaptive radiation
Sketches of the heads of finches from the Galapagos Islands showing the differences in their beak shapes due to evolution. Image credit: John Gould (14.Sep.1804 – 3.Feb.1881) – From “Voyage of the Beagle”; also online through Biodiversity This page was last updated on 2017-02-17 How does evolution explain the similarities and differences between living things?Evolution accounts for the conspicuous patterns of similarities and differences among living things over time and across habitats through the action of biological processes such as mutation, natural selection, symbiosis and genetic drift.
How does evolution explain the differences between organisms?evolution, theory in biology postulating that the various types of plants, animals, and other living things on Earth have their origin in other preexisting types and that the distinguishable differences are due to modifications in successive generations.
How are organisms similar and different from each other?Every living creature has DNA, which has a lot of inherited information about how the body builds itself. Scientists can compare the DNA of two organisms; the more similar the DNA, the more closely related the organisms. This method can also help when looks are deceptive.
How does evolution explain how all organisms are related?Darwin thought of evolution as "descent with modification," a process in which species change and give rise to new species over many generations. He proposed that the evolutionary history of life forms a branching tree with many levels, in which all species can be traced back to an ancient common ancestor.
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