 Charles Darwin was born Feb. 12 th, 1809  Same year as Abraham Lincoln (what was happening during this time period?)  How was the scientific view of the world changing? – World has changed over time, and is constantly evolving  Developed scientific theory of EVOLUTION:  The process of change over time

 One of the most important scientific voyages in history  5 year voyage on the HMS Beagle  Visited what continents?  Africa, S. America, Australia  Collected many plant and animal specimens, and took LOTS of notes, drawings, and observations

 Visited wide range of habitats  In S. America - rhea  In Africa - ostrich  In Australia - emu  All similar habitats, yet different animals…  *Different, yet ecologically similar animal species inhabited separate, but ecologically similar habitats around the globe  Species vary globally!

 *Different, yet related animal species occupied different habitats within a local area (species vary locally)  Habitat varied on each of the islands  Ex: Tortoise shells differed for each island  Ex: Finch beaks differed for each island

 In addition to living specimens, Darwin also collected preserved remains or traces of ancient organisms, called fossils  He noted that some fossils of extinct animals were similar to living species  Ex: Extinct glyptodont – today’s armadillo

 Darwin had many questions  Used his collections and observations to fit the pieces of the puzzle together  Why did some organisms live in one place and nowhere else?  Why did different flightless birds live in similar grasslands in the Southern Hemisphere, but not the North?  Used ideas of other scientists of his time

 During Darwin’s time, new field called geology, study of rocks  Provided evidence about Earth’s history – Earth probably not just 4,000 years old – much older!  Famous geologists – James Hutton and Charles Lyell  Wrote that Earth is extremely old and processes that changed Earth in the past are the same now  Hutton’s concept of deep time – idea that our planet’s history is so old we cannot comprehend it

 French naturalist, Jean-Baptiste Lamarck proposed that:  1. Organisms could change during their lifetime by selectively using (or not using) certain body parts (acquired characteristics)  2. Individuals could pass these acquired traits on to offspring, causing “evolution” or change over time  Are these hypotheses accurate?

 English economist Thomas Malthus (1798)  Human population was growing exponentially  Hypothesis: if human population grew uncontrollably, there wouldn’t be enough living space and food for everyone  Limiting factors would cause certain individuals to survive or not survive  How did this help Darwin’s theory?

 Darwin studied changes produced by plant and animal breeders  They knew some change could be passed on to improve crops and livestock  Farmers selected trees that produced the largest fruit or cows that produced the most milk  Process called artificial selection, in which nature provides variation and humans select those they find useful