Evolution: Evidence of Evolution

Evolution: Evidence of Evolution

1. Fossils - preserved remains of organisms that lived and died ages ago

   • Only a small portion the organisms would have formed fossils however they do help to suggest how organisms have evolved over time.
     • E.g horses. S there is many fossils of horses dating 55 million years ago to present day, different bone structure can be sen sand the adaptations of the species
       • Can never say that one species has evolved into another species but can say they seem to be related, probably share an ancestor.

2. Molecular evidence - structural similarities & differences between fossils can suggest how they were related

   • These features were caused by genes
     • Occasionally DNA can be found and extracted from fossils e.g DNA extracted from mammoth bones shows that they and modern day elephants have a common ancestor that lived 6 million years ago. African elephants diverged at the point and Asian elephants are shown to have diverged 440,00 years later