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Evolution is the change in the heritable characteristics of biological populations over successive generations. [1] [2] It occurs when evolutionary processes such as natural selection and genetic drift act on genetic variation, resulting in certain characteristics becoming more or less common within a population over successive generations. [3]
In biology, evolution is the process of change in all forms of life over generations, and evolutionary biology is the study of how evolution occurs. Biological populations evolve through genetic changes that correspond to changes in the organisms ' observable traits .
Divergent evolution is the process of speciation. This can happen in several ways: Allopatric speciation is when species are separated by a physical barrier that separates the population into two groups. Evolutionary mechanisms such as genetic drift and natural selection can then act independently on each population. [9]
The evolutionary process of speciation creates groups that are linked by a common ancestor and all its descendants. Species inherit traits, which are then passed on to descendants. Evolutionary biologists use systematic methods and test phylogenetic theory to observe and explain changes in and among species over time. These methods include the ...
Evolutionary processes give rise to diversity at every level of biological organization, from kingdoms to species, and individual organisms and molecules, such as DNA and proteins. The similarities between all present day organisms imply a common ancestor from which all known species, living and extinct , have diverged.
Evolutionary developmental biology (informally, evo-devo) ... This process explains the accurate conservation of toolkit gene sequences, which has resulted in deep ...
Evolutionary thought, the recognition that species change over time and the perceived understanding of how such processes work, has roots in antiquity—in the ideas of the ancient Greeks, Romans, Chinese, Church Fathers as well as in medieval Islamic science.
Evolution of photosynthesis – Origin and subsequent evolution of the process by which light energy is used to synthesize sugars Evolution of sexual reproduction Evolutionary arms race – Competition of sets of genes, traits, or species, that develop adaptations against each other