Victoria's Voyage of Evolution

 The anole lizards of the Caribbean islands embody two of Darwin's predictions: that species change over time (microevolution) and that lineages diverge (speciation).  Within the forests of the Caribbean islands, niches are distributed vertically, from the ground to the tree canopy. As the anoles colonize a new island, they fill those niches and as a result begin to develop certain traits better suited to those niches. The anoles who stay on the ground have longer limbs for faster running, while the anoles who live among the tree's branches have shorter legs to hold onto thin twigs. Leafy canopy anoles have large sticky toepads to help them cling onto broad leaves and not fall to the forest floor. This microevolution happens rapidly, across relatively few generations, because natural selection is so strong.  Scientists have actually been able to observe this process happening in real time, which is evidence for Darwin's prediction that species change over time. ...

 My name is Victoria Gaa. I am most recently from Kansas, but it's hard to say where I am really from since I have lived in several different places before that (my favorite was Colorado). In the future I hope to go to a place where I can be happy, preferably somewhere with good friends, good job opportunities in wildlife biology, and surrounded by lots of nature. Being outside and enjoying the world around me is one of my major passions, whether that's reading under a shady tree in the park or hiking up a trail in the mountains. I also love the tallgrass prairie and am passionate about conserving this disappearing and beautiful ecosystem for future generations.  Evolution is so fascinating to me even before taking this class because it's wild to think about how life on Earth has changed and expanded from the first cell to the amazing biodiversity we see today. Every branch on the tree of life is a story evolution can tell us, from flowering plants to big cats to deep sea l...