The Peppered moth avoids predation by using camouflage to blend int to tree bark. It was originally white with black spots. However in the industrial revolution when the local trees were blacked by soot from the factory chimneys, a black variant with white spots became prevalent in these regions.
In the areas of pollution the black version blended in and the white stood out so natural selection changed the appearance of the population in these areas.
The branches of genetics, paleontology, observed natural selection and speciation all support evolution. Examples: (Genetics) Human chromosome 2 resulted from a fusion of two ancestral chromosomes. (Paleontology) Evolution of the horse. (Natural selection) Observed in Peppered moths. (Speciation) The Hawthorn Fly
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Because in the wild there is a struggle for existence as more organisms are born than there are resources to support them. Thus, there is a wide variety of traits expressed by these many organisms and some of these traits confer survival and reproductive advantages which is what natural selection is selecting for.
Scientists did not prove things then anymore than they prove things now. Evidence, masses of converging evidence support the theory of evolution by natural selection. Darwin, in his day, had much evidence to support his theory. All the way from artificial selection to island biogeography. Since that time the theory has moved on to where it is no longer just Darwin's theory, but modified and supported with so much evidence that the theory became the bedrock of biology. Go here. talkorigins.org
As we currently understand it, evolution happens if: - There are populations of organisms reproducing with variation - Those variations are inherited by offspring - More offspring is produced than can comfortably subsist in the habitat - Offspring therefore compete with one another for resources and mating opportunities - Variant inherited traits affect their ability to compete.
Genetic variation in itself does not 'support' natural selection: it is what natural selection acts upon.
The branches of genetics, paleontology, observed natural selection and speciation all support evolution. Examples: (Genetics) Human chromosome 2 resulted from a fusion of two ancestral chromosomes. (Paleontology) Evolution of the horse. (Natural selection) Observed in Peppered moths. (Speciation) The Hawthorn Fly
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Charles Darwin, the creator of the theory of natural selection, was born 1809.
One of those that caught my attention was the evidence of peppered moths changing their color from light to dark due to industrial pollution. This supposedly shows how natural selection can change a species into another type, and eminent scientists have emphasized the importance of this supposed proof of evolution.Professor John Maynard Smith stated: "We should expect to find the most rapid evolutionary changes in populations suddenly exposed to new conditions. It is therefore natural that one of the most striking changes which has been observed in a wild population . . . is the phenomenon of 'industrial melanism,' the appearance and spread of dark forms of a number of species of moths" (The Theory of Evolution, 1966, p. 137).
Because there is a large body of evidence to support it.
Life has a great potential for creating diversity.
It is not a matter of agreement, it is a matter of accepting the overwhelming evidences in support of the theory of evolution by natural selection.
I do not so much " believe it " as I an convinced by the myriad lines of converging evidences that support the theory of evolution by natural selection. talkorigins.org
supports hypothesis that species have changed over time.
The growth or shrinkage of populations has nothing to do with natural selection, but with the availability of resources, and the ability of organisms to utilize those resources. This is also known as 'carrying capacity'. The natural tendency is for organisms to produce more offspring than the environment can support. So if the environment supports more individuals, then the population will automatically grow. If conditions change and the environment supports less individuals, then some individuals will starve or be otherwise unable to reproduce. Natural selection, in this case, "determines" which individuals pass, and which do not.
Because in the wild there is a struggle for existence as more organisms are born than there are resources to support them. Thus, there is a wide variety of traits expressed by these many organisms and some of these traits confer survival and reproductive advantages which is what natural selection is selecting for.