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Subtopic: Processes of Evolution

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Resource	Grade Level	Media Type
Adaptive Radiation: Darwin's Finches Finches on the Galapagos Islands have evolved to exploit almost every possible niche. This diagram shows the range of food sources available on the island and the different beak shapes adapted to exploit each of them.	9-12	JPEG Image
The Advantage of Sex Why did sex evolve? The likely answers, in this essay for the Evolution Web site by science journalist Matt Ridley, may surprise you.	9-12	HTML Document
Allopatric Speciation These images from the Smithsonian Institution depict Nancy Knowlton's work with snapping shrimp in Panama. Knowlton found that the closing of the isthmus -- dividing the Pacific Ocean from the Caribbean -- resulted in new species of shrimp.	9-12	JPEG Image
Ancient Farmers of the Amazon This video segment from Evolution: "Evolutionary Arms Race" tells the story of the leafcutter ant and the fungus it farms -- an example of mutually beneficial symbiosis.	6-12	QuickTime Video
Animal Body Plans: Homeobox Genes The homeobox genes that define the basic body plan of mice and fruit flies are illustrated in this graphic from The Human Evolution Coloring Book by Adrienne Zihlman. The accompanying article describes how these genes act as "molecular architects" in all animal species.	9-12	PDF Document
Biological Invaders This video segment from Evolution: "Extinction!" shows the impact of invasive species on native ecosystems.	9-12	QuickTime Video
Chris Schneider: Rethinking Conservation In this interview filmed for Evolution: "Darwin's Dangerous Idea," biologist Chris Schneider discusses the relationship between conservation and speciation.	9-12	HTML Document
Co-Evolution Students explore different types of symbiotic relationships that exist between species.	9-12	Lesson Plan
The Common Genetic Code Paul Nurse describes his research that showed that humans share some genes with organisms as different from us as simple brewer's yeast. Footage from Secret of Life: "Immortal Thread."	9-12	QuickTime Video
Complex Relations In this text excerpted from chapter 3, "Struggle for Existence," of Charles Darwin's On the Origin of Species, Darwin draws on firsthand and historical information for his observations about evolution.	9-12	HTML Document
Convergence: Marsupials and Placentals This graphic illustrates some of the marsupial mammals in Australia and placental mammals in North America. Even though they are not closely related, these mammals look alike because they have adapted to similar ecological roles. From The Human Evolution Coloring Book by by Adrienne Zihlman.	9-12	PDF Document
Coral Reef Connections Dive in and explore what makes this beautiful world so fragile. In this Evolution Web feature, discover how coevolution has shaped the ecological relationships among reef creatures.	3-12	Flash Interactive
E. O. Wilson: Ants and Ecosystems This segment is from an interview with ant specialist and biologist E.O. Wilson, filmed for Evolution: "Evolutionary Arms Race."	9-12	QuickTime Audio
Evolution of Camouflage This video segment from Evolution: "Darwin's Dangerous Idea" illustrates the remarkable camouflage of a praying mantis against its leafy backdrop.	3-12	QuickTime Video
Evolution of the Eye Zoologist Dan-Erik Nilsson demonstrates how the complex human eye could have evolved from simple light-sensitive cells. From Evolution: "Darwin's Dangerous Idea."	9-12	QuickTime Video
Evolution on Double Time This excerpt from Evolution: The Triumph of an Idea by Carl Zimmer describes how gene duplication may have been the key to the rapid evolution of the early stages of life on Earth.	9-12	HTML Document
Evolving Ideas: How Does Evolution Really Work? The process of evolution through natural selection is the focus of this video segment from Evolution, which presents a field study of hummingbird speciation in Ecuador.	9-12	QuickTime Video
Evolving Ideas: How Do We Know Evolution Happens? This video from Evolution focuses on one of the several lines of evidence for evolution -- fossils, highlighting the evolution of whales from land-dwelling mammals to the aquatic creatures we know today.	6-12	QuickTime Video
Evolving Ideas: Why Does Evolution Matter Now? In this video from Evolution, an exploration of multi-drug resistant tuberculosis in the Russian prison system highlights one reason it is important to understand evolution.	9-12	QuickTime Video
Finch Beak Data Sheet This graphic from Ecology and Evolution of Darwin's Finches by Peter Grant presents data from the Galapagos Islands, showing that a severe drought put selective pressure on the population of Darwin's finches and resulted in a change in the average beak size in the next generation.	9-12	PDF Document
Fish with Fingers In this video segment from Evolution: "Great Transformations," paleontologist Jenny Clack explains that vertebrates evolved fingers before they invaded land.	6-12	QuickTime Video
Floral Arrangements Explore a few of the ways plants pollinate each other in this video segment from Sexual Encounters of a Floral Kind.	6-12	QuickTime Video
Frozen Frogs This video segment adapted from NOVA scienceNOW shows how the common wood frog freezes solid every winter, an adaptation that allows the organism to survive the cold winter.	6-12	QuickTime Video
Genetic Drift and the Founder Effect This image of polydactyly illustrates one symptom of Ellis-van Creveld syndrome, which is commonly found in the Amish. Ellis-van Creveld is one example of the founder effect and genetic drift.	9-12	JPEG Image
Genetic Tool Kit The shared set of genes for body segments, possessed by all animals, are discussed in this video segment from Evolution: "Great Transformations."	6-12	QuickTime Video
Genetic Variation This video segment from NOVA: "Cracking the Code of Life" explores the genetic similarities and differences among organisms.	9-12	QuickTime Video
HIV Immunity Although repeatedly exposed to HIV, Steve Crohn's blood cells were never infected. Dr. David Ho investigates in this video segment from NOVA: "Surviving AIDS."	9-12	QuickTime Video
How Evolution Works Students learn about natural selection by discussing the evolution of the eye, genetic variation, adaptation, sexual selection, and the Galapagos finches.	9-12	Lesson Plan
How New Species Evolve Students learn about both allopatric and sympatric speciation.	9-12	Lesson Plan
Human Chromosome 2 In this video segment adapted from NOVA: "Judgment Day: Intelligent Design on Trial," learn how modern genetics and molecular biology offer compelling support for evolution. The video features an interview with biologist Ken Miller.	6-12	QuickTime Video
Hummingbird Species in the Transitional Zones This video segment from Evolution: "Darwin's Dangerous Idea" shows biologists Chris Schneider and Tom Smith studying hummingbirds and other animals in Ecuador. Their research is investigating the processes by which new species are formed.	9-12	QuickTime Video
Isolating Mechanisms: Lacewing Songs Hear the different songs of three lacewing flies, which serve as reproductive isolating mechanisms between species and determine mate choice. Lacewing audio song from Charles Henry.	9-12	Flash Interactive
Leafy Spurge This video segment from Evolution: "Extinction!" shows how biological control is successfully combating North Dakota's infestation of leafy spurge, a non-native plant.	9-12	QuickTime Video
Masters of Disguise In the face of danger, what's a spineless animal to do? This video segment introduces the concept of camouflage -- how animals achieve it and how this form of disguise benefits both predators and prey. Footage from NOVA: "Animal Impostors."	K-12	QuickTime Video
The Mating Game This interactive feature from the Evolution Web site takes a lighthearted but informative look at some of the strategies various organisms use to reproduce.	6-12	Flash Interactive
Microbe Clock In this Evolution Web feature, learn how mutation and fast reproductive rates can allow deadly microbes to outpace medical breakthroughs.	9-12	Flash Interactive
Mike Novacek: Fossils in the Gobi Biologist Mike Novacek discusses his discovery of mammal fossils in the Gobi Desert and what we can learn from them. From Evolution: "Extinction!"	9-12	HTML Document
Mimicry: The Orchid and the Bee In this photograph from Oxford Scientific Films, a horned bee attempts to mate with an Ophrys orchid, which has evolved to resemble a female bee.	9-12	JPEG Image
Molecular Clocks: Proteins That Evolve at Different Rates From The Human Evolution Coloring Book by Adrienne Zihlman, four different proteins from humans and horses are compared in this graphic and article, and the reasons each protein evolves at its own characteristic rate are discussed. Each protein is useful for measuring evolutionary change over a different time scale.	9-12	PDF Document
A Mutation Story This video segment describes the role of the sickle cell gene in natural selection. Footage courtesy of the PBS series Secret of Life: "Accidents of Creation."	6-12	QuickTime Video
An Origin of Species In this Evolution Web feature, witness for yourself how a new species can evolve as you observe natural selection and adaptive radiation in action.	9-12	Flash Interactive
Permian-Triassic Extinction In this video segment from Evolution: "Extinction!", geologist Peter Ward discusses evidence for a Permian-Triassic mass extinction.	9-12	QuickTime Video
The Red Queen An example of the Red Queen hypothesis, the sexual population of Mexican Poeciliid fish are able to keep up with a changing environment, while the asexual populations are not as successful. From Evolution: "Why Sex?"	6-12	QuickTime Video
Riddle of the Bones In this Evolution Web feature, piece together clues to how one of our early ancestors looked as you examine images from four significant fossil finds of Australopithecus afarensis.	9-12	Flash Interactive
Sex and the Single Guppy Play in our streams and see how exhibitionism has an evolutionary payoff in this Evolution simulation of Endler's experiment.	6-12	Shockwave Interactive
Shape of Trees: The Frustration Principle This series of images shows the work of biologist Karl Niklas on the adaptations and evolution of plants. From The Evolutionary Biology of Plants.	9-12	JPEG Image
Tale of the Peacock The peacock provides a classic example of sexual selection, the force behind nature's extravagances. From Evolution: "Why Sex?"	6-12	QuickTime Video
Teaching Evolution Case Studies: Bonnie Chen Bonnie Chen builds on students' prior knowledge of mutations to lead her class through a simulation of wading birds feeding.	9-12	QuickTime Video
Ted Daeschler and Neil Shubin: Early Tetrapod Fossils In this transcript of an interview filmed for Evolution: "Great Transformations," Ted Daeschler and Neil Shubin describe the discovery and significance of some of their key fossil finds.	9-12	HTML Document
Tiktaalik: Evolution of a "Fishapod" In this media-rich lesson, students learn about transitional fossils and explore the similarities and differences between the structures of different animals. They focus particularly on Tiktaalik, a transitional fossil between aquatic and terrestrial vertebrates.	9-12	Lesson Plan
Toxic Newts The father and son team of Brodie and Brodie track down the predator able to stomach a mysteriously hyper-toxic newt, an example of an evolutionary arms race in action. From Evolution: "Evolutionary Arms Race."	6-12	QuickTime Video
The Transforming Leap, from Four Legs to Two John Noble Wilford, a New York Times science writer, outlines various hypotheses on the origin of bipedalism.	9-12	HTML Document
Transitional Tetrapod Fossil In this video segment from NOVA: "Judgment Day: Intelligent Design on Trial," learn about the discovery of a well-preserved transitional fossil and how such transitional fossils support the theory of evolution.	6-12	QuickTime Video
Whales in the Making This graphic from Evolution, traces the evolution of whales from land-dwelling mammals to the aquatic creatures we know today.	6-12	PDF Document