Evolution and the origin of

Life
 Key Objectives
 Describe the major history and origin of life on Earth
especially the accepted geological chronology and the
distinguishing characteristics of major group of
organisms present during those time periods.
 Explain the mechanisms: artificial selection, natural
selection, genetic drift, mutation, and recombination
that leads to the different patterns of descent with
modifications from the common known ancestors to
produce the organismal diversity known as of today.
 Trace back the origin of evolutionary thoughts.
 Explain the different pieces of evidence of evolution and
infer evolutionary relationships among organisms using
the said pieces of evidence.
Properties shared by all living organisms
that may vary
 Cellular complexity – all living things are composed of either
one or more cells that are highly complex yet organized and
enclosed within membranes.
 Growth and Development – living things use energy to grow by
metabolizing compounds by cellular respiration or
photosynthesis.
 Reproduction – continuity of life would definitely be impossible
without reproduction.
 Irritability (respond to stimuli)- all organisms are sensitive to
different stimuli
 Homeostasis – living things maintain relatively constant internal
conditions, which are different from their environment.
 EVOLUTION
Evolution
• The change of species over time

Evolution • Descent with modification

• Explains both the unity and diversity of life on

Earth

o Illustrates that living things share like

characteristics because they have
common ancestry

o Explains how species adapt to

various habitats and ways of life
with the result that life is very diverse.
Evolution

Organic evolution - pertains to gradual changes that have taken place

in living organism and closely allied to genetics and
plant and animal breeding.

- extinction started when man began his nomadic way of life.

- there were 5 major extinction during the past geologic time.

- impending 6th extinction.

estimated that about 30,000 species were lost/year

massive lost of species including ourselves

Evolution

Naturalistic Theory:
B yrs ago
Atmosphere
Methane amino acids
Ammonia temperature and
moisture became + UV - Glycine
Hydrogen - Alanine
Water vapor suitable for life
No oxygen

accumulates in shallow
higher organisms
confined pockets of
waters

protozoans autotrophs autocatalytic chemical evolution

(synthesize like molecules)
Evolution
Fossil record - important evidence for evolution.

Georges Cuvier (French Comparative

Anatomist)
– did the first comprehensive
studies of fossils.

Charles Darwin
– first to consider fossils
as evidence of the
evolution of organism.

Paleontology – study of fossils and provide many facts of evolution

Evolution

Linnaues, Cuvier, Agassiz and Owen – believed that species have been created
separately.

no evidence

fossils were lost due to

catastrophes
Ex. Biblical flood

Aristotle – organisms were molded

by “perfecting principle”.
Evolution

Jean Baptist de Lamarck (1744 – 1829)

– environment affects the shape and
organization of animals and believed
that there have been progressive
development in form and structure
of living organisms.

- theory of Use and Disuse

- any organ that is used more will grow larger & stronger
(more developed), areas that are used less will become
smaller & weaker (less developed.)
Evolution

Charles Darwin (1809-1882) – English Naturalist of broad vision who observed

that there”s a struggle for existence.

- published his theory in 1859 (“On the origin of

species by means of natural selection or the
preservation of favored races in the struggle for life”).

Essence of Darwin’s theory:

1. variation
- no two individuals of the same species are exactly alike,
organisms have different sizes, shapes etc.
2. geometric ratio of increase
- the numbers of every species tend to become
enormously large; yet the population each remains
approximately constant because many individuals are
eliminated by enemies, disease, competition, climate and etc
Evolution

3. struggle for existence

- individuals having variations unsuited to the
particular conditions in nature are eliminated whereas those
whose variations are favorable will continue to exist and
reproduce.

Alfred Russel Wallace (1823-1913)

– have the same conclusion with

Darwin but did his studies on flora and
fauna in the
Malay Archipelago.
Charles Darwin
Darwin’s Theory of Evolution

 Evolution, or change over time, is the process by which

modern organisms have descended from ancient
organisms.

 A scientific theory is a well-supported testable

explanation of phenomena that have occurred in the
natural world.
How do you think Darwin came up with
his theory?
Voyage of the Beagle
Voyage of Beagle

 Dates: February 12th, 1831

 Captain: Charles Darwin
 Ship: H.M.S. Beagle
 Destination: Voyage around the world.
 Findings: evidence to propose a revolutionary
hypothesis about how life changes over time
 Patterns of Diversity

 Darwin visited Argentina and Australia which had

similar grassland ecosystems.

those grasslands were inhabited by very

different animals.

neither Argentina nor Australia was home to

the sorts of animals that lived in European
grasslands.
 Patterns of Diversity

 Darwin posed challenging questions.

Why were there no rabbits in Australia,

despite the presence of habitats that
seemed perfect for them?

 Why were there no kangaroos in England?

 Living Organisms and Fossils

 Darwin collected the preserved remains of ancient organisms, called

fossils.

 Some of those fossils resembled organisms that were still alive today.
 Living Organisms and Fossils

 Others looked completely unlike any

creature he had ever seen.

As Darwin studied fossils, new questions arose.

Why had so many of these species
disappeared?

How were they related to living species?

Fossils
The Galapagos Island

The smallest, lowest islands were

hot, dry, and nearly barren-Hood
Island-sparse vegetation

The higher islands had greater

rainfall and a different assortment
of plants and animals-Isabela-
Island had rich vegetation.
The Galapagos Island

 Darwin was fascinated in particular by the

land tortoises and marine iguanas in the
Galápagos.

 Giant tortoises varied in predictable ways from

one island to another.

 The shape of a tortoise's shell could be used to

identify which island a particular tortoise
inhabited.
Animals found in the Galapagos

Land Tortoises

Darwin Finches

Blue-Footed Booby

Marine Iguanas
Animals
The Journey Home

Darwin Observed that

characteristics of many plants
and animals vary greatly among
the islands

Hypothesis: Separate species

may have arose from an original
ancestor
Ideas that shaped Darwin’s Thinking

James Hutton:
1795 Theory of Geological
change
Forces change
earth’s surface
shape
Changes are slow
Earth much older
than thousands of
years
Ideas that Shaped Darwin’s Thinking

Charles Lyell
Book: Principles of Geography
 Geographical features can be
built up or torn down
 Darwin thought if earth changed
over time, what about life?
Lamarck
Lamarck’s Theory of Evolution

 Tendency toward Perfection(Giraffe

necks)

 Use and Disuse (bird’s using forearms)

 Inheritance of Acquired Traits

Population Growth
Thomas Malthus-19th
century English
economist
If population grew
(more Babies born
than die)
Insufficient living
space
Food runs out
Darwin applied
this theory to
animals
Publication of Orgin of Species

Russel Wallace wrote an

essay summarizing
evolutionary change from
his field work in Malaysia

Gave Darwin the drive to

publish his findings
Natural Selection & Artificial Selection

 Natural variation--differences among individuals of a

species

 Artificial selection- nature provides the variation among

different organisms, and humans select those variations
they find useful.
Evolution by Natural Selection

 The Struggle for Existence-members of each

species have to compete for food, shelter,
other life necessities

 Survival of the Fittest-Some individuals better

suited for the environment
Natural Selection

Over time, natural

selection results in
changes in inherited
characteristics of a
population. These
changes increase a
species fitness in its
environment
Descent

 Descent with Modification-Each living organism has descended,

with changes from other species over time
 Common Descent- were derived from common ancestors
Evidences for Evolution
Evidences for Evolution

Anatomical Evidence

• Darwin was able to show

that a common descent
hypothesis offers a
plausible explanation for
anatomical similarities
among organisms.
Evidences for Evolution
Anatomical Evidence
Homologous structures
- structures that are anatomically
similar because they are inherited
from a common ancestor
Evidences for Evolution
Anatomical Evidence

Analogous structures
- serve the same function, but they are not
constructed similarly, nor do they share a common
ancestry

• The wings of birds and the adaptive

streamline shape of a fish and squid are
analogous to each other

Vestigial structures [L. vestigium, trace, footprint] - are

anatomical features that are fully developed in one group of
organisms but are reduced and may have no function in similar
groups.
Evidences for Evolution
Biochemical Evidence
All living organisms use the same basic biochemical
molecules, including DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid),
RNA (ribonucleic acid), and ATP (adenosine
triphosphate).
conclusion
these molecules were present in the
first living cell or cells and have been
passed on as life began.
Evidences for Evolution
Biochemical Evidence
Mechanisms of Evolution

Mechanisms: the processes of evolution

- evolution is responsible for both the remarkable similarities we see
across all life and the amazing diversity of that life — but exactly
how does it work?

Fundamental to the process

is genetic variation upon
which selective forces can
act in order for evolution
to occur.
Mechanisms of Evolution
Descent with modification
- evolution was defined as descent with modification
from a
common ancestor, but exactly what has been
modified?

evolution only occurs when there is a change in gene frequency

within a population over time

heritable which is what really matters in evolution

long term change

Mechanisms of Evolution

Mechanisms of change:

1. Mutation
- could cause parents with genes for bright green coloration to
have offspring with a gene for brown coloration. That would
make genes for brown coloration more frequent in the
population than they were before the mutation
Mechanisms of Evolution

2. Migration
- some individuals from a population of brown beetles might
have joined a population of green beetles. That would make
genes for brown coloration more frequent in the green beetle
population than they were before the brown beetles migrated
into it.
Mechanisms of Evolution
3. Genetic Drift
- two brown beetles happened to have four offspring survive to
reproduce. Several green beetles were killed when someone
stepped on them and had no offspring. The next generation
would have a few more brown beetles than the previous
generation — but just by chance. These chance changes
from generation to generation are known as genetic drift.
Mechanisms of Evolution

4. Natural Selection
- Imagine that green beetles are easier for birds to spot (and
hence, eat). Brown beetles are a little more likely to survive to
produce offspring. They pass their genes for brown coloration
on to their offspring. So in the next generation, brown beetles
are more common than in the previous generation.
Evolution

Where Life Originated?

- it was inferred that life began in the oceans
- earliest remains of plants and animals in rocks of marine origin

freshwater

land

3 b yr old rocks - fossils of Eobacterium (resembles that of bacteria and

the oldest known organism).
1 b yr old rocks - fossils of unicellular organisms (blue-green algae,
bacteria and even fungi)
600 to 700 m yr old (1st Cambrian) rocks - fossils of plants and animals.
 Years
Event
ago

Anatomically modern humans evolve. Seventy thousand years later, their descendents
130,000
create cave paintings — early expressions of consciousness.

In Africa, an early hominid, affectionately named "Lucy" by scientists, lives. The ice ages
4 million
begin, and many large mammals go extinct.

A massive asteroid hits the Yucatan Peninsula, and ammonites and non-avian dinosaurs go
65 million
extinct. Birds and mammals are among the survivors.

As the continents drift toward their present positions, the earliest flowers evolve, and
130 million
dinosaurs dominate the landscape. In the sea, bony fish diversify.

225 million Dinosaurs and mammals evolve. Pangea has begun to break apart.

Over 90% of marine life and 70% of terrestrial life go extinct during the Earth's largest mass
248 million
extinction. Ammonites are among the survivors.

The supercontinent called Pangea forms. Conifer-like forests, reptiles, and synapsids (the
250 million
ancestors of mammals) are common.
 Four-limbed vertebrates move onto the land as seed plants and large forests appear. The
360 million
Earth's oceans support vast reef systems.

420 million Land plants evolve, drastically changing Earth's landscape and creating new habitats.

Arthropods move onto the land. Their descendants evolve into scorpions, spiders, mites,
450 million
and millipedes.

Fish-like vertebrates evolve. Invertebrates, such as trilobites, crinoids, brachiopids, and

500 million
cephalopods, are common in the oceans.

Multi-cellular marine organisms are common. The diverse assortment of life includes
555 million
bizarre-looking animals like Wiwaxia.

Unicellular life evolves. Photosynthetic bacteria begin to release oxygen into the
3.5 billion
atmosphere.

3.8 billion Replicating molecules (the precursors of DNA) form.

4.6 billion The Earth forms and is bombarded by meteorites and comets.
Millions of years
Millions of years
Evolution