AP BIOLOGY

Detailed explanation-1: -Speciation is how a new kind of plant or animal species is created. Speciation occurs when a group within a species separates from other members of its species and develops its own unique characteristics.

Detailed explanation-2: -Darwin’s finches are an example of adaptive radiation. On each island, the birds slowly adapted to local conditions over a long period of time, and this led to the formation of one or more finch species found on each island.

Detailed explanation-3: -In evolutionary biology, adaptive radiation is a process in which organisms diversify rapidly from an ancestral species into a multitude of new forms, particularly when a change in the environment makes new resources available, alters biotic interactions or opens new environmental niches.

Detailed explanation-4: -Adaptive radiation is a concept in evolutionary biology where the number of species with a common ancestor increase rapidly however they are characterised by great morphological and ecological variations. So, the correct answer is ‘Divergent evolution’.

Detailed explanation-5: -Galapagos finches have driven hypotheses of how speciation occurs. Most commonly, it is assumed that natural selection separates species originating from a single population on the basis of variation in traits that confer advantages for survival and reproduction.