I/GCSE Biology - Fossils and Evolution

Do you remember the previous post talking about the evolution in I/GCSE Biology? in this post, we will move on talking the fossil!

Fossil ➡️ the preserved remains or trace of a dead organism.

Why does fossil related to evolution?

The fossil record gives us evidence of what the living organisms were like and how they changed over time (evolved).

1. Fossils do not always form
   • Only form if conditions in the ground are suitable
2. Soft tissue decays
   • Soft tissue usually decays too quickly to fossilise
   • Soft tissue forms impression fossils but only in very special conditions
3. Many fossils are yet to be found
   • Many are much deeper in the ground than we dig up

• Many living vertebrates have the same basic pentadactyl (five fingered) structure to their limbs.
• These have been adapted to the animal’s needs.
• Suggests that they evolved from the same ancestors.

And we're done with this topic! Well Done!

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Drafted by Alyssa (Biology)

References:

1. "fossil". Photo from the internet.
2. "Evidence for evolution", https://cdn.kastatic.org/ka-perseus-images/eec8f7aec6fff27ff68ff787a7961118d89a2d2d.jpg
3. "Supercomputer scours fossil record", https://media.nature.com/lw800/magazine-assets/d41586-020-00117-1/d41586-020-00117-1_17571158.jpg
4. "evolution", https://cdn.britannica.com/03/55003-050-FA859C9F/horses-dawn-horse-size-all-one-toes.jpg