ANTH 102 Lecture Notes - Lecture 8: Homo Sapiens, Selective Breeding, Reproductive Isolation
Document Summary
Evolution expansion: variation in finches and domestic dogs. The four galapagos finches have variable beaks depending on their adaption: heavy, thick, straight and slender. All domestic dogs share a common ancestor, the wolf. The variation in dog breeds today have been achieved through artificial selection: lumping and splitting. If go by strict definition- know what a species is. It is easy if it is living and observable. Lumpers- all humans are homo sapiens, yet not one is identical to each other. If we skeletonized everyone, the variation in skeletons would be as much then the outward appearance. Lumpers- people are different looking, but part of same species. No reason to think there was not this much variation in human populations millions of years ago. Splitters- see differences and split them into different categories. Easy when can look at living species today, harder when trying to get information from fossils of ancient humans.
