Darwin’s Theory of Evolution by Natural Selection

Louise Livesey

Definitions from OED Online

EVOLUTIONThe origination of species of animals and

plants, as conceived by those who attribute it to a process of development from earlier forms, and not to a process of ‘special creation’

TRANSMUTATIONConversion or transformation of one species

into another; spec. applied to the form of evolution or development propounded by Lamarck (1815-22)

Charles Darwin1809-1882

Erasmus DarwinZoonomia (1790s)

Jean-Baptiste LamarckPhilosophie zoologique

(1809)

Darwin’s theory of natural selection

Struggle for resources within

and between species

Heritable variation

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Varieties of domestic dog

Darwin’s theory of natural selection

Struggle for resources within

and between species

Heritable variation

Natural selection

+ =

Individuals with the most adaptive characteristics more likely to survive and reproduce

Þaccumulation of changes over time Þ new species

On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection (1859)

From Darwin’s On the Origin of Species (1859)