Speciation+&+It's+Tempo

Speciation & It's Tempo **Speciation**, as defined by my science textbook, is "the origin of a new species (1)."

Two main ways speciation can occur are: **allopatric speciation** and **sympatric speciation**.
 * Allopatric speciation is when a population forms a new species while isolated geographically from it's original population (2).
 * Sympatric speciation is when a small population becomes a new species without being geographically separated (3).

The two theories for the tempo of speciation are **punctuated equilibrium** and **gradualism** (4)**.**
 * Punctuated equilibrium is when fossil record shows a dramatic change in the evolution of a species. The theory is such because the evolution of a species can occur in a relatively short amount of time, for example, a species that lives 5 million years but undergoes its main evolution for 50,000 years. This short amount of time is difficult to differentiate in fossil record (5).
 * Gradualism is when a species descends from a common ancestor and gradually diverges continually in their morphology as they develop unique adaptations and characteristics (6).



(1) AP Edition Biology, Seventh Edition, Campbell and Reece (2) AP Edition Biology, Seventh Edition, Campbell and Reece (3) AP Edition Biology, Seventh Edition, Campbell and Reece (4) AP Edition Biology, Seventh Edition, Campbell and Reece (5) AP Edition Biology, Seventh Edition, Campbell and Reece (6) AP Edition Biology, Seventh Edition, Campbell and Reece