DESCENT WITH

MODIFICATION AND
THE DEVELOPMENT OF
EVOLUTIONARY
THOUGHT
MARCH 8, 2023
LEARNING COMPETENCIES

• Show patterns of descent with modification from

common ancestors to produce the organismal diversity
observed today. (STEM_BIO11/12-IIIc-g-10)

• Trace the development of evolutionary thought

(STEM_BIO11/12-IIIc-g-11)
OBJECTIVES:
At the end of the lesson, the learners shall be able
to:

• discuss the patterns of descent with

modification from common ancestors to produce
the organismal diversity observed today;
• trace the development of evolutionary thought;
and
• appreciate the importance of decent with
modification by explaining the given example.
Direction: Arrange the following
letters to form a correct word. Write your
answers on the strip.
1. IOEVUTNOL
2. HACLERS
ARINDW
3. NRAATUL
SEONCTIEL
 4.
CAESOTRN
 5.
NSMUITRATOATN
Descent with modification refers to the passing on
of traits from parent organisms to their offspring. This
passing on of traits is known as heredity, and the
basic unit of heredity is the gene.

Genes are the blueprints for making an organism and,

as such, hold information about its every conceivable
aspect: its growth, development, behavior,
appearance, physiology, and reproduction
(Klappenbach, 2019).
Descent with modification by natural selection explains the
adaptations of organisms and the unity and diversity of life.

Evolution described as “descent with modification” by

Charles Darwin refers to the species that changed over time,
giving rise to the new species and share a common ancestor.

Although Charles Darwin's name is virtually synonymous with

the word evolution, he was not the first person to recognize the
phenomenon of species change nor did he even use the word
"evolution" in the original theory he set forth in On the Origin of
Species.
Charles Darwin

Charles Darwin (1809–1882) was born in

western England.
• As a boy, he had a consuming interest
in nature.
• When Darwin was 16, his father sent
him to the University of Edinburgh to
study medicine, but he dropped out
without a degree and enrolled at
Cambridge University with the intent of
becoming a clergyman.
Charles Darwin

• At that time, most naturalists and

scientists belonged to the clergy.

• After graduation, Darwin joined the

crew of the survey ship HMS Beagle as
ship naturalist and conversation
companion to Captain Robert FitzRoy.

• FitzRoy chose Darwin because of his

education and because his age and
social class were like those of the
captain.
Heredity and Evolution
According to Charles Darwin, all species
descended from only a few life forms that had been
modified over time.

This "descent with modification," as he called it,

forms the backbone of his Theory of Evolution, which
posits that the development of new types of organisms
from pre-existing types of organisms over time is how
certain species evolve.
How It Works
The passing on of genes is not always exact.

Parts of the blueprints may be copied incorrectly, or

in the case of organisms that undergo sexual
reproduction, genes of one parent are combined with
the genes of another parent organism.

That is why children are not exact carbon copies of

either of their parents.
There are three basic concepts that are helpful in
clarifying how descent with modification works:

✓ Genetic mutation
✓ Individual (or natural) selection
✓ Evolution of the population (or species as a
whole)
• It is important to understand that genes and individuals do
not evolve; only populations evolve.

• The process looks like this:

Genes mutate, and those mutations have
consequences for the individuals within a species. Those
individuals either thrive or die out due to their genetics. As a
result, populations change (evolve) over time.
Clarifying Natural Selection
Natural selection comes into play, according to Darwin, when a
species adapts to its environment, thanks to its specific genetic makeup.

Example:
• two species of wolves lived in the Arctic: those with short, thin fur and
those with long, thick fur.
• Those wolves with long, thick fur was genetically capable of living in the
cold. Those with short, thin fur were not.
• Therefore, those wolves whose genetics allowed them to live
successfully in their environment lived longer, bred more frequently, and
passed on their genetics.
• They were "naturally selected" to thrive. Those wolves that were not
genetically adapted to the cold eventually died out.
The Origin of Species
Darwin never used the word evolution in the first edition of The Origin of
Species, although the final word of the book is evolved. Instead, Darwin
used the phrase descent with modification.

• All living organisms are related to each other due to their descent from a
common ancestor that lived in the distant past.

• Over evolutionary time, the descendants of that common ancestor have

accumulated diverse modifications, or adaptations, that allow them to
survive and reproduce in specific habitats.

• Over long periods of time, descent with modification has led to the rich
diversity of life we see today.
If we try to visualize descent with modification, the
history of life resembles a tree, with multiple branches
from a common trunk.

• Closely related species, the twigs on a common

branch of the tree, shared the same line of descent until
their recent divergence from a common ancestor.
Three important points need to be emphasized about evolution through
natural selection.

1. Although natural selection occurs through interactions between

individual organisms and their environment, individuals do not evolve. A
population is the smallest group that can evolve over time.

2. Natural selection can act only on heritable traits, traits that are passed
from organisms to their offspring. Characteristics acquired by an organism
during its lifetime may enhance its survival and reproductive success, but
there is no evidence that such characteristics can be inherited by offspring.

3. Environmental factors vary from place to place and from time to time. A
trait that is favorable in one environment may be useless or even harmful in
another environment.
Development of Evolutionary Thought

• Many people assume that the theory put forth by Darwin in Origin of Species
is the final say on evolutionary theory.

• Biologists, however, know that the theory of evolution has evolved over time.
For example, evolutionary theory dramatically changed when Darwin’s
original ideas were merged with ideas from genetics to become the Modern
Synthesis.

• People will see that evolution makes sense when they realize that the theory
of evolution has been updated. The updated and revised theory becomes
easier to understand, appreciate, and embrace.

• This more integrated theory of evolution has even greater power to explain
the origins of the great diversity of life on Earth.
Evolution of Evolutionary Theory
Antiquity
The history of evolution long predates Darwin and his
theory. The belief in a changing or dynamic universe can be first
seen in ancient Greek philosophy.

• Heraclitus (c. 500 B.C.E.), also known as the "flux philosopher,”

believed that change was a fundamental property of the universe.

• Empedocles (c. 392–432 B.C.E.), first articulated a crude but

dynamic theory that postulated that the origin of life had taken
place in a manner that suggested evolution.
From Aristotle to Linnaeus
• However, beginning with the philosophical worldview established
by Aristotle (384–322 B.C.E.), the belief in a changing universe
fell into disfavor.

• Aristotle and his numerous medieval and Renaissance

translators, commentators, and supporters instead believed in a
static universe which held that living organisms were created
initially and then remained essentially unchanged.

• These ideal types or species were arranged hierarchically in what

came to be known as the "scala naturae," or the ladder of
creation.
Buffon, Lamarck, and Transmutationism
Belief in species change, or transmutationism, slowly began
to emerge during the Enlightenment.

This period saw the emergence of the belief in a progressive

world, both scientific and social. It also saw the beginnings of the
new science of geology.

Geological theories suggested that fossils were of organic

(once-living) origin and that uniform or constant processes rather
than catastrophic or one-time events had shaped Earth's history.
• The French naturalist Comte de Buffon (Count
Buffon, 1707–1788)
• One of the first to question the fixity of species
and to suggest a transmutationist theory with a
startling resemblance to Darwinian evolution.

• Although he was a respected naturalist, his

theoretical explanations for the origin of life and of
species change were not accepted during his
time.
• Buffon's transmutationist ideas were also not
accepted because they opposed the philosophical
teachings of his French colleague Georges
Cuvier, the great comparative anatomist and the
father of modern paleontology.
• The first to suggest a viable theory of species
change was Frenchman Jean-Baptiste Lamarck.

• Lamarck was interested in adaptation or the manner

and process by which organisms are able to adapt
physiologically and morphologically to their
environment.

• He was especially interested in how well-adapted

organs like the neck of the giraffe had originated.

• According to Lamarck, the use or, in many cases,

disuse of such a vital organ could lead to the
development of novel but well-adapted traits. The
cumulative effect of these adaptations could
eventually lead to a new species.
• Transmutationism itself became increasingly
acceptable by the early nineteenth century.

• It captured the interest of Darwin's own

grandfather, Erasmus Darwin (1731–1802),
who suggested that life had originated from
"one living filament."

• Other transmutationists included French

anatomist Isidore Geoffroy Sainte Hilaire
(1805–1861), who studied birth defects.

• He suggested that through such "monstrous

births" new species might suddenly arise.
Darwin and On the Origin of Species
• Charles Darwin was the leading transmutationist of the nineteenth century.

• Darwin had developed the major features of his theory as early as 1837
after returning from his five-year voyage of the HMS Beagle and after
reading the famous Essay on the Principle of Population by Thomas
Malthus (1766–1834).

• However, Darwin did not make his work public until much later. He felt that
he needed to collect solid evidence to his support what he knew would be a
contentious theory.

• He was finally forced into joint publication of an abbreviated version of his

theory in 1858, shortly after English naturalist Alfred Russel Wallace (1823–
1913) independently formulated his own nearly identical theory.
Darwin and On the Origin of Species
• It took Darwin less than a year to outline in book form his theory of species
change that he called "descent with modification" by means of the
mechanism of natural selection.

• The full title of his famous book was On the Origin of Species or the
Preservation of Favored Races in the Struggle for Life. The book appeared
in bookstores on November 24, 1859 and sold out on the first day.

• It went through six editions as Darwin modified his theory in response to his
many critics.

• It is generally thought that the first edition is a more accurate account of the
workings of evolution because subsequent editions included a watered-
down version of his original theory.
Darwin and On the Origin of Species
• Darwin thought "descent with modification" took place primarily
through the mechanism he termed natural selection.

• Natural selection occurs when an organism with a favorable

variation in some trait reproduces more as a result, thereby
increasing the frequency of the variation in the next generation.

• In addition to this mechanism for driving species change, Darwin

included some four of five other mechanisms that he thought
could account for species change including the inheritance of
acquired characters.