evoluutioon
Evolution is the process by which populations of organisms change over successive generations. This change is driven by several key mechanisms, the most prominent being natural selection. Natural selection operates on the variation present within a population. Individuals with traits that make them better suited to their environment are more likely to survive and reproduce, passing those advantageous traits to their offspring. Over long periods, this differential survival and reproduction can lead to significant alterations in the characteristics of a species, and even the emergence of new species.
Other mechanisms also contribute to evolution. Genetic drift is a random process where allele frequencies in
The evidence for evolution is vast and comes from diverse fields. The fossil record shows a progression