Table 1 Concepts addressed (compiled, with the exception of hitchhiking, from Gregory 2009)
Concept | Common misconception | ||
|---|---|---|---|
1 | Heritable variation, overproduction of offspring, and survival of the fittest are all required for natural selection to occur. | Any single tenet is sufficient for natural selection to occur. | |
2 | Natural selection works in the moment, lacking forethought. | Organisms plan ahead for the long-term survival of the species. | |
3 | In evolution by natural selection, the environment dictates which variants will survive. | The environment dictates new traits that will be acquired. | |
3a | Fitness to the environment leads to heritable change. | Individuals “want” or “need” to change. | |
3b | Fitness enhances survival. | The fittest individuals are the physically strongest. | |
3c | The results of natural selection are predictable in a constant environment. | Evolution is random and therefore unpredictable. | |
4 | Natural selection is a process that sorts different variants. | Natural selection is an agent that chooses superior individuals. | |
4a | Variation already exists in the population. | New variants evolve in response to need. | |
4b | Natural selection results in a decrease of variation over time; some traits go extinct. | Natural selection is a creative process. | |
4c | The proportion of variants changes over time. | All of the individuals in a species change simultaneously. | |
4d | Maladaptive traits can be inherited, too. | Maladaptive traits disappear immediately because they are not used. | |
5 | Not all evolution is natural selection. | Natural selection and evolution are synonymous. | |
5a | Nonadaptive traits can hitchhike along with adaptive traits. | All traits result from natural selection. | |