Tracing Evolutionary History Chapter 15 Tracing Evolutionary History

Are Birds Really Dinosaurs with Feathers? Did birds evolve from dinosaurs? Evolutionary biologists Have been pondering this question for decades

Recent fossil finds Support this notion

MACROEVOLUTION AND EARTH’S HISTORY 15.1 The fossil record chronicles macroevolution The fossil record Documents the main events in the history of life

In the geologic record Major transitions in life-forms separate eras Smaller changes divide eras into periods

The geologic record Table 15.1

15.2 The actual ages of rocks and fossils mark geologic time Radiometric dating Measures the decay of radioactive isotopes Can gauge the actual ages of fossils and the rocks in which they are found

15.3 Continental drift has played a major role in macroevolution Is the slow, incessant movement of Earth’s crustal plates on the hot mantle Edge of one plate being pushed over edge of neighboring plate (zones of violent geologic events) Antarctic Plate Australian Plate Split developing Indian Plate Eurasian Plate North American Plate South American Plate Nazca Plate Pacific Plate Arabian Plate African Plate Figure 15.3A

The formation of Pangaea Altered habitats and triggered extinctions Figure 15.3B 65 135 245 Millions of years ago Paleozoic Mesozoic Cenozoic North America Eurasia Africa South America India Antarctica Australia Laurasia Gondwana Pangaea

The separation of the continents Affected the distribution and diversification of organisms North America South Europe Asia Africa Australia = Living lungfishes = Fossilized lungfishes Figure 15.3C Figure 15.3D

15.4 Tectonic trauma imperils local life CONNECTION 15.4 Tectonic trauma imperils local life Volcanoes and earthquakes result from plate tectonics The movements of Earth’s crustal plates San Andreas Fault North American Plate San Francisco Santa Cruz Los Angeles Pacific California Figure 15.4A, B

15.5 Mass extinctions were followed by diversification of life-forms Occurred at the end of the Permian and Cretaceous periods

The Cretaceous extinction, which included the dinosaurs May have been caused by an asteroid Figure 15.5 North America Chicxulub crater Yucatán Peninsula

A rebound in diversity Follows mass extinctions

PHYLOGENY AND SYSTEMATICS 15.6 Phylogenies are based on homologies in fossils and living organisms Phylogeny, the evolutionary history of a group Is based on identifying homologous and molecular sequences that provide evidence of common ancestry

Analogous similarities Result from convergent evolution in similar environments Figure 15.6

Systematics Involves the analytical study of diversity and phylogeny

15.7 Systematics connects classification with evolutionary history Taxonomists assign a binomial Consisting of a genus and species name, to each species A genus May include a group of related species

Genera are grouped into progressively larger categories Family, order, class, phylum, kingdom, and domain Species Genus Family Order Class Phylum Kingdom Domain Felis catus Felidae Carnivora Mammalia Chordata Animalia Eukarya Figure 15.7A

Is a hypothesis of evolutionary relationships A phylogenetic tree Is a hypothesis of evolutionary relationships Species Felis catus (domestic cat) Mephitis mephitis (striped skunk) Lutra lutra (European otter) Canis familiaris (domestic dog) lupus (wolf) Genus Family Order Felidae Carnivora Mustelidae Canidae Figure 15.7B

15.8 Cladograms are diagrams based on shared characters among species Cladistics uses shared derived characters To define monophyletic taxa Taxa Ingroup (Mammals) Outgroup (Reptiles) Eastern box turtle Duck-billed platypus Red kangaroo North American beaver Characters Long gestation Gestation Hair, mammary glands Vertebral column Figure 15.8A 3 2 1

Shared primitive characters Are common to ancestral groups

The simplest (most parsimonious) hypothesis Creates the most likely phylogenetic tree Figure 15.8B Lizards Snakes Crocodiles Birds Common reptilian ancestor

15.9 Molecular biology is a powerful tool in systematics Molecular systematics Develops phylogenetic hypotheses based on molecular comparisons Brown bear Polar bear Asiatic black American black bear Sun Sloth Spectacled Giant panda Raccoon Lesser Pleistocene Pliocene 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 Oligocene Miocene Millions of years ago Ursidae Procyonidae Common ancestral carnivorans Figure 15.9A

Studies of ribosomal RNA sequences Have shown that humans are more closely related to fungi than to green plants Student Mushroom Tulip Common ancestor Figure 15.9B

DNA Comparisons Molecular comparisons of nucleic acids Often pose technical challenges Can reveal the most fundamental similarities or differences between species

Molecular Clocks Some regions of DNA Change at a rate consistent enough to serve as molecular clocks to date evolutionary events

Genome Evolution Homologous genes Are found in many species Human Chimpanzee Gorilla Orangutan Common ancestor Figure 15.9C

15.10 Arranging life into kingdoms is a work in progress In the five-kingdom system Prokaryotes are in the kingdom Monera Eukaryotes (plants, animals, protists, and fungi) are grouped in separate kingdoms Monera Protista Plantae Fungi Animalia Earliest organisms Prokaryotes Eukoryotes Figure 15.10A

Recognizes the prokaryotic domains Bacteria and Archaea The domain system Recognizes the prokaryotic domains Bacteria and Archaea Eukaryotes Are placed in the domain Eukarya Bacteria Archaea Eukarya Earliest organisms Prokaryotes Eukoryotes Figure 15.10B