Campbell Biology (10th Edition)

Published by Pearson
ISBN 10: 0321775651
ISBN 13: 978-0-32177-565-8

Chapter 55 - Test Your Understanding - Level 3 - Synthesis/Evaluation - Page 1253: 10

Answer

It would not be Darwinian evolution.

Work Step by Step

You could conceivably argue this either way, though in the strictest terms it does not appear to meet the standard of Darwinian evolution. Darwinian evolution specifically refers to the inheritance through generations of adaptations that are selected for by environmental factors. The evolution of an ecosystem is comprised of many such events, but the ecosystem as a whole is not subject to the need for fitness. It changes due to a multitude of internal and external factors, but it has no reproduction or inheritance. It will not be likely to die if it doesn't adapt, though it will change.
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