Adaptive Radiation of Darwin's Finches

By Peter Grant

Recent data help explain how this famous group of Galapagos birds evolved, although gaps in our understanding remain

Evolution

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March-April 2002

Volume 90, Number 2
Page 130

DOI: 10.1511/2002.10.130

A powerful metaphor for evolutionary diversification is a tree. A typical spreading tree has a single trunk, two or more major branches, several minor branches and many twigs. Its foundations—its roots and the remnants of the original seed—remain hidden from sight. The metaphor applies to the full set of living things on Earth—"the tree of life"—as well as to small groups of species, whether they are marsupial mammals or Hawaiian Drosophila.

Fritz Pölking / Peter Arnold, Inc.

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