Question

What factors speed up evolution?

Answer 1

Evolution:

1. Evolution is defined as a change in the allele frequency of a population of living things over a period of time.
2. For example, the mouse population now has a relative frequency of 55% brown and 45% black.
3. Evolution is the result of natural selection that selects the advantageous traits that assist the organisms in adapting to their changing environment.
4. Thus, the adaptability of an organism decides which traits are selected and passed on to the next generation.

The factors that speed up evolution are:

Selection pressure:

1. This decides which trait is favorable to the changing environment, depending on which the selection pressure is based.
2. The evolution rate will be more rapid if selection pressures are high.

Shorter generation times:

1. Any catastrophe that leads to the collapse of a generation (like a population bottleneck and Founder effect) leaves behind only a handful of its individuals.
2. These individuals incorporate new traits that their ancestors lacked thereby speeding evolution.

Changing environments:

1. This is a major factor that determines species migration, extinction, as well, as adaptation.
2. All three cases lead to evolution.

Sexual reproduction:

Sharing of beneficial DNA sequences between different lineages leads to newer combinations of genotypes and thus aids evolution.

Horizontal gene transfer:

1. This is a form of gene transfer between individuals of the same generation and not between parent and offspring.
2. It leads to beneficial evolutionary advantages like the development of antibiotic resistance in bacteria.