AP BIOLOGY

Detailed explanation-1: -Although it was Darwin, above all others, who first marshaled convincing evidence for biological evolution, earlier scholars had recognized that organisms on Earth had changed systematically over long periods of time.

Detailed explanation-2: -Contrary to popular belief, Darwin was not the first to propose that species evolve. The idea that animal populations change over time, so that for instance giraffes today have longer necks than their distant ancestors, was much discussed in the 1800s.

Detailed explanation-3: -Fossils. Fossils document the existence of now-extinct past species that are related to present-day species. Direct observation. We can directly observe small-scale evolution in organisms with short lifecycles (e.g., pesticide-resistant insects).

Detailed explanation-4: -The distribution of exotic species in South America, in the Galápagos Islands and elsewhere, and the observation of fossil remains of long-extinguished animals during his voyage on the Beagle, would contribute to confirm the reality of evolution in Darwin’s mind.

Detailed explanation-5: -In the early 19th century prior to Darwinism, Jean-Baptiste Lamarck (1744–1829) proposed his theory of the transmutation of species, the first fully formed theory of evolution.