GRADE 8- BIOLOGY
CLASS TEST 3 NOTES
CHAPTER 13-VARIATION AND NATURAL SELECTION.
Variation refers to the differences between each organism in a species. Variation is
beneficial to a species as it allows natural selection to occur and reduces the risk
of extinction from diseases. There are two types of variation: genetic variation and
phenotypic variation.
● Genetic variation- each organism in a species has a different set of DNA, which is
due to genetic variation. Genetic variation is increased during meiosis, which produces
gametes. Each gamete has a different set of alleles, which means that when the two
gametes fuse an entirely new set of genes are produced.
● Phenotypic variation- The phenotype of an organism refers to its observable
characteristics, such as height or hair colour. Phenotypical variation can be caused by
both genetic and environmental factors. For example, the potential height of an
organism is decided in genes which come from the parents, although some organisms
will never reach this height as they do not receive enough nutrients from their
environment
Mutations- are genetic changes results in a random change result in the
Adaptive features are inherited functional features that help the organism by
increasing its fitness, which is the ability of the organism to survive and reproduce in its
environment.
Natural selection is where organisms with favorable alleles and advantageous
characteristics have a higher probability of surviving and reproducing. This is due to
competition within a population for resources and mates. Due to variation in the alleles
of each species, each organism within a species has different traits, some positive and
some negative. Those with more positive traits can adapt to the environment more
effectively and are thus more likely to survive and produce many offspring, which inherit
these alleles. Over time, negative characteristics are lost from the species as organisms
with those characteristics are not able reproduce to pass on their alleles. This is known
as evolution. Evolution allows a population to become more adapted to its environment
over time, because of natural selection.
Eg-Antibiotic resistance: Some bacterial strains become resistant to antibiotics as a
result of natural selection:
1. A mutation occurs in a bacterial cell allele which makes it resistant to an
antibiotic.
2. When that antibiotic is administered, this cell is not killed, whereas cells which
have not become resistant are killed.
3. The resistant bacterial cell can therefore survive and reproduce, passing on the
resistant allele to produce more resistant bacteria.
It shows five species of honeycreeper.
Natural selection / evolution is the process that causes the gradual change from one
species to another. Charles Darwin is the scientist who developed the theory to explain
how this process could happen.
The drawings show two different species of butterfly.
Both species can be eaten by most birds.
• Amauris has an unpleasant taste which birds do not like, so birds have learned not to
prey on it.
• Hypolimnas does not have an unpleasant taste, but most birds do not prey on it.
birds do not prey on Hypolimnas because they have similar wing pattern of Amauris,
and the birds may assume they will have similar taste that of Amauris.
If we explain that in terms of natural selection, mutation or variation produce wing
pattern like [Link] these butterflies were not eaten by birds. These butterflies breed
and they pass their genes to the next generation.
An island’s entire population of a species of butterfly are descended from just
two parents. These were introduced from the mainland.
The population will adapt more slowly to environmental changes because the population
has very little genetic diversity since they descended from just 2 parents.
Reduced variation in a population means that they are less likely to survive any
changes in the environment.
Evolution
Evolution is a change in the inherited characteristics of a population over time through a
process of natural selection which may result in the formation of a new species
. Theory of Evolution: All species have evolved from simple life forms that first
developed more than three billion years ago.
Evolution occurs because of natural selection.
● Mutations occur which provide variation between organisms.
● If a mutation provides a survival advantage the organism is more likely to survive to
breeding age.
● The mutation will then be passed onto offspring.
● Over many generations, the frequency of the mutation will increase within the
population
Evidence for evolution is seen in:
1. Fossils: the remains of organisms from many years ago, which are found in rocks
2. Antibiotic resistance in bacteria: the selection pressure of antibiotics leads to
advantageous mutations being selected for in bacteria populations, so they are no
longer killed when exposed to antibiotics.
Fossils
Fossils are the remains of organisms from millions of years ago, which are found in
rocks. They are formed from:
1. Parts of organisms that have not decayed because oxygen or moisture were not
present, meaning that the microbes that cause decay cannot survive.
2. Parts of the organism such as teeth, shells and bones are replaced by minerals as
they decay, forming a rock structure of the original part.
3. soft tissue of the organism do not form fossil/ they may be damaged sometime/
its difficult to find out.
Fossils cannot be used to tell us how life started on Earth because:
● Most early life forms are soft-bodied and therefore decay completely, so there are few
fossils of them.
● Any traces left have been destroyed by geological activity.
Extinction: when an entire species has died out
Factors which can contribute to extinction include:
1. Changes in environment which the species cannot adapt fast enough to.
2. New predators may have evolved or migrated to the area.
3. A new disease arises and there are no resistant alleles to it.
4. They have to compete with a species which has advantageous mutations for the
same food source.
5. A catastrophic event can wipe out a species.
6. Destruction of habitat.
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