api: YAML JSON TOON Database version: 1.0.0 format: json dataset: slug: evolution-mechanisms title: Mechanisms of Evolution description: Processes that drive evolutionary change. summary: "The processes that change the genetic makeup of populations: natural selection, mutation, genetic drift, gene flow and sexual selection, with the bottleneck and founder effects, speciation, adaptive radiation, convergent evolution, coevolution, artificial selection, punctuated equilibrium and non-random mating." use_when[2]: You need to distinguish processes that change allele frequencies from patterns of evolution.,You are explaining how populations adapt or diverge. caveats[2]: "Some entries are processes that change allele frequencies (drift, selection) and others are patterns or outcomes (convergent evolution, adaptive radiation).",Evolution has no goal; adaptation is a result of selection in particular environments. related[3]: genetics-fundamentals,taxonomy-ranks,ecology-concepts category: Biology category_slug: biology tags: "biology,evolution,genetics" view_count: 0 entry_count: 14 fields[2]{section,field,type,example}: data,mechanism,string,Natural Selection data,description,string,Differential survival and reproduction due to h… data[14]{mechanism,description}: Natural Selection,Differential survival and reproduction due to heritable traits. Mutation,Changes in DNA sequence that introduce new variation. Genetic Drift,Random changes in allele frequencies in small populations. Gene Flow,Transfer of alleles between populations. Sexual Selection,Selection based on success in attracting mates. Bottleneck Effect,"A sharp reduction in population size that leaves a smaller, less diverse gene pool." Founder Effect,Reduced genetic variation when a small group establishes a new population. Non-Random Mating,"Choosing mates by traits or proximity, which changes genotype frequencies without changing allele frequencies directly." Artificial Selection,"Humans choosing which individuals reproduce, as in crops and domestic animals." Speciation,Formation of new species when populations become reproductively isolated. Adaptive Radiation,Rapid diversification of a lineage into many forms that occupy different niches. Convergent Evolution,Unrelated lineages evolving similar traits under similar selective pressures. Coevolution,"Reciprocal evolutionary change in interacting species, such as flowers and their pollinators." Punctuated Equilibrium,A pattern in which species remain stable for long periods and change rapidly in short intervals.