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Essay / Research Paper Abstract
This is a 5 page paper that provides an overview of evolutionary adaptation. The example of Darwin's finches is cited. Bibliography lists 4 sources.
Page Count:
5 pages (~225 words per page)
File: KW60_KFsci002.doc
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Unformatted sample text from the term paper:
organisms with particular traits are better able to compete for the resources in a population, those organisms are then able to reproduce more frequently and successfully, and the result is
that the next generation of the population will generally possess a greater distribution of the trait in question. Often, the traits which prove most useful for acquiring resources are determined
by the particulars of the environment in which the population is situated. A well-cited example of this phenomenon is the finches which populate the Galapagos Islands; while deriving from a
common ancestor, the extreme diversity displayed by these birds is generally taken as a powerful indicator of the capacity of environmental factors to impact competition, and by extension, the evolution
of a species. For example, despite their common genetic heritage, environmental factors such as the types of foods available have resulted in substantial diversion in beak shapes in species such
as the cactus finch and the medium ground finch, which tend towards a long and thin beak, and a shorter, deeper beak, respectively. The capacity for species such as finches
to display evolutionary changes over a very short period of time provides important evidence for the principles of adaptive evolution. This paragraph helps the student begin to discuss the
data obtained and its significance. To analogously explore the relationship between beak shape and superior competitive ability within an ecosystem, a classroom experiment used a variety of hand tools to
replicate the shape and function of the many different kinds of beaks found in Galapagos finches, with each tool being subjected to increasingly competitive "trials" of gathering different types of
seeds. For all three types of seeds, clear "winners" emerged by the final trial, indicating that certain beak shapes are better adapted to acquiring certain food sources than others. This
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