In this project, we studied an endagered species to see if we could save it
Overview
For this project, before we started we learned about speciation and biodiversity for about a week. Then, we took a look at all the endangered species and chose one. For my group, we chose the mountain gorilla. We studied this species and learned about why it is endangered and if we can save it for about a week. We then worked on our documentary. For the final product, all we were told was that this project needs to be different, so we thought a documentary was a very creative idea
The Project
Below is our video as well as a document containing our research
Reflection
One pit I had in this project was failing to innovate. I didn't try to make any really new ideas for the project, i more just sat back and let my group do the work. A second pit I had was failing to go above and beyond. I only did the minimum for this project and should have tried to make my work little better
One peak I had in this project was cooperation. I never really argued with my group and we always agreed with one another. A second peak I had on this project was making sure our work was done on time. We had plenty of extra time to finish the project and our work was still high quality and we passed. Overall this was a great group.
One peak I had in this project was cooperation. I never really argued with my group and we always agreed with one another. A second peak I had on this project was making sure our work was done on time. We had plenty of extra time to finish the project and our work was still high quality and we passed. Overall this was a great group.
Concepts
Evolution: Evolution is the development of new traits in species that help or allow them to survive. Evolution can take millions of years to happen, and all species have experienced some kind of evolution in order to become what they are today. For example, mountain gorillas have evolved to have muscular arms that help with climbing trees. There are five factors of evolution
Non-Random Mating: Non-Random mating is where the organisms select a mate because it has favorable traits, not simply because they are compatible. This results in more of the advantageous traits staying in the gene pool, and therefore leeds to evolution.
Mutation: Mutation is a random change in an organism's genes. Mutations can be harmful, helpful or unnoticeable. If the mutation happens to be helpful, it can lead to evolution because this trait that would never have naturally shown up in this species is now introduced into the gene pool.
Adaptation: Adaptation is a genetic change that is beneficial to an environment. This leads to evolution because organisms with this trait are more likely to survive, reproduce and therefore add this advantageous trait to the gene pool.
Gene Flow: Gene flow is when an organism of the same species but with different traits move to a new group of the same species. This adds the new gene into the gene pool. This results in new possible advantageous traits, and therefore evolution
Small Population/Genetic Drift: A small population can have some sort of random event remove genes from the gene pool. This phenomenon is known as genetic drift. This results in a change in the gene pool and therefore evolution
Speciation: Speciation is the creation of a new species. There are two categories of speciation: Allopatric and Sympatric. Allopatric is speciation due to different environments, while sympatric is speciation within the same environment. There are four types of speciation
Behavioral Isolation: Behavioral isolation is when two species are unable to reproduce due to their behavior. This results in speciation because the two organisms are incompatible and therefore develop separately.
Geographical Isolation: Geographical Isolation is where two species are separated by a geographical barrier. This results in speciation because the two species are unable to reproduce and therefore develop separately
Temporal Isolation: Temporal Isolation is where two species are unable to reproduce because they do it at different times. This results in speciation because the two species cannot create offspring and therefore develop separately
Mechanical Isolation: Mechanical Isolation is where two species are unable to reproduce because they are simply too different from one another. This results in speciation because the two species are incapable of creating offspring, and therefore develop separately.
Gene Pool: The gene pool is an umbrella term that refers to all of the genes in a population. If a population has more biodiversity, it has a greater gene pool. If a population has a greater size, it overall has more genes, but not necessarily a larger gene pool. The mountain gorilla has a small gene pool as the overall population is small.
Biodiversity: Biodiversity is the overall biological diversity within a population or ecosystem. Biodiversity is crucial for survival of most species, whether it be the diversity of the food they eat or the diversity within that species. Mountain gorillas rely on the biodiversity of their food in order to get the necessary nutrients to survive.
Extinction: Extinction is when the last organism in a species has perished. A mass extinction is when a massive amount of species go extinct. Extinction has many causes, ranging from human influence (poaching, pollution) or environmental factors (habitat loss, invasive species, natural disaster). The mountain gorilla is being faced with extinction due to many people destroying their habitat in order to mine for coal/
Natural Selection: Natural selection, or more commonly known as "Survival of the Fittest," is when organisms have favorable traits that helps them survive instead of their weaker counterparts. Since these organisms survive, they reproduce and keep their generation alive. The mountain gorilla is strong and mobile, which helps it have no predators in the wild and therefore helps it survive.
Artificial Selection: Artificial selection is natural selection that is forced upon a species. For example, say there are 2 fish: One that survives in warm water and one that survives in cool water. If you forced them both into cool water, only one fish would survive due to natural selection. The mountain gorilla has been placed in many reserves in order to protect it, which is a form of artificial selection
Non-Random Mating: Non-Random mating is where the organisms select a mate because it has favorable traits, not simply because they are compatible. This results in more of the advantageous traits staying in the gene pool, and therefore leeds to evolution.
Mutation: Mutation is a random change in an organism's genes. Mutations can be harmful, helpful or unnoticeable. If the mutation happens to be helpful, it can lead to evolution because this trait that would never have naturally shown up in this species is now introduced into the gene pool.
Adaptation: Adaptation is a genetic change that is beneficial to an environment. This leads to evolution because organisms with this trait are more likely to survive, reproduce and therefore add this advantageous trait to the gene pool.
Gene Flow: Gene flow is when an organism of the same species but with different traits move to a new group of the same species. This adds the new gene into the gene pool. This results in new possible advantageous traits, and therefore evolution
Small Population/Genetic Drift: A small population can have some sort of random event remove genes from the gene pool. This phenomenon is known as genetic drift. This results in a change in the gene pool and therefore evolution
Speciation: Speciation is the creation of a new species. There are two categories of speciation: Allopatric and Sympatric. Allopatric is speciation due to different environments, while sympatric is speciation within the same environment. There are four types of speciation
Behavioral Isolation: Behavioral isolation is when two species are unable to reproduce due to their behavior. This results in speciation because the two organisms are incompatible and therefore develop separately.
Geographical Isolation: Geographical Isolation is where two species are separated by a geographical barrier. This results in speciation because the two species are unable to reproduce and therefore develop separately
Temporal Isolation: Temporal Isolation is where two species are unable to reproduce because they do it at different times. This results in speciation because the two species cannot create offspring and therefore develop separately
Mechanical Isolation: Mechanical Isolation is where two species are unable to reproduce because they are simply too different from one another. This results in speciation because the two species are incapable of creating offspring, and therefore develop separately.
Gene Pool: The gene pool is an umbrella term that refers to all of the genes in a population. If a population has more biodiversity, it has a greater gene pool. If a population has a greater size, it overall has more genes, but not necessarily a larger gene pool. The mountain gorilla has a small gene pool as the overall population is small.
Biodiversity: Biodiversity is the overall biological diversity within a population or ecosystem. Biodiversity is crucial for survival of most species, whether it be the diversity of the food they eat or the diversity within that species. Mountain gorillas rely on the biodiversity of their food in order to get the necessary nutrients to survive.
Extinction: Extinction is when the last organism in a species has perished. A mass extinction is when a massive amount of species go extinct. Extinction has many causes, ranging from human influence (poaching, pollution) or environmental factors (habitat loss, invasive species, natural disaster). The mountain gorilla is being faced with extinction due to many people destroying their habitat in order to mine for coal/
Natural Selection: Natural selection, or more commonly known as "Survival of the Fittest," is when organisms have favorable traits that helps them survive instead of their weaker counterparts. Since these organisms survive, they reproduce and keep their generation alive. The mountain gorilla is strong and mobile, which helps it have no predators in the wild and therefore helps it survive.
Artificial Selection: Artificial selection is natural selection that is forced upon a species. For example, say there are 2 fish: One that survives in warm water and one that survives in cool water. If you forced them both into cool water, only one fish would survive due to natural selection. The mountain gorilla has been placed in many reserves in order to protect it, which is a form of artificial selection