BRAINCAKESpeciation
Speciation is the formation of a new species from an existing one. A species is a group of organisms with similar characteristics that can interbreed to produce fertile offspring.
All the alleles of all the genes in an interbreeding population make up its gene pool. While individuals can breed freely, alleles are shared throughout the gene pool and the population stays as one species.
Speciation happens when part of a population becomes reproductively isolated, so that gene flow between the groups stops. The process is:
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Key terms in this lesson
- genetic drift
- A change in allele frequency in a population due to chance, which has a greater effect in small populations.
More in Natural Selection
- Directional Selection
- Antibiotics
- Antibiotic Resistance
- Preventing Antibiotic Resistance
- Types of Isolation
- Allopatric Speciation
- Endemic Species
- Desert Pupfish
All 29 lessons in Natural Selection · All Edexcel AS-level Biology topics