Blog Post Module 2: Reflection Prompt

 

1. Pick your favorite prediction Darwin's idea of descent with modification makes:
   • Species change through time (microevolution).
   • Lineages split and diverge (speciation).
   • Novel forms derive from earlier forms (macroevolution).
   • Species are not independent, but are connected by descent from common ancestors (common ancestry and homology).
   • Earth and life are old.
2. Speciation in the belly of a bug
   
3. According to the Science Magazine News article, "Speciation in the Belly of a Bug" by Elizabeth Pennisi, scientists catch the cicada's gut bacteria in the process of divergence. Cicada's and other insects closely related are unable to naturally obtain a substantial amount of protein. Due to this, they 've been teaming up for millions of years with the bacteria within their belly that are responsible for manufacturing protein, a.k.a amino acids. In the latest Cell report, scientists observed that a bacterial partner within a cicada independently split, forming two separate species about 5 million years ago. At the beginning of the divergence, the bacteria were observed to contain a similar amount of genes. However overtime, their gene count decreased to less than half the amount of genes that they had before. Due to their genes deteriorating, the two species of bacteria, as well as the cicada's organs, work together in a symbiotic relationship in order to function properly.