EVOLUTION
DARWIN’S THEORY OF NATURAL SELECTION
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Question
[CLICK ON ANY CHOICE TO KNOW THE RIGHT ANSWER]
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How had an original finch been modified in different ways for different purposes?
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Why were these finch species only found in certain parts of the world?
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Why couldn’t finches with narrow beaks consume a diet of seeds in addition to insects?
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How did this great variety of finch species survive in the same ecosystem?
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Detailed explanation-1: -1: Darwin’s Finches: Darwin observed that beak shape varies among finch species. He postulated that the beak of an ancestral species had adapted over time to equip the finches to acquire different food sources.
Detailed explanation-2: -All 18 species of Darwin’s finches derived from a single ancestral species that colonized the Galápagos about one to two million years ago. The finches have since diversified into different species, and changes in beak shape and size have allowed different species to utilize different food sources on the Galápagos.
Detailed explanation-3: -Comparisons of DNA sequences revealed the evolutionary relationships among finch species. The data showed that all finch species living in the Galápagos Islands today are more closely related to one another than to any species of birds on the mainland, suggesting that they originated from a common ancestor.
Detailed explanation-4: -However, the Galapagos finches helped Darwin solidify his idea of natural selection. The favorable adaptations of Darwin’s Finches’ beaks were selected for over generations until they all branched out to make new species. These birds, although nearly identical in all other ways to mainland finches, had different beaks.