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Evo in the News: Hybrid sharks aren’t “trying” to adapt

Grade Level(s):

  • 9-12
  • 13-16

Source:

  • UC Museum of Paleontology

Resource type:

  • Evo in the News article

Time: 20 minutes

Overview

This news brief, from February 2012, describes the discovery of hybrid sharks in Australian waters, debunks some common misconceptions regarding the discovery, and examines the possible evolutionary trajectories of these animals.

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  • [Mechanisms of evolution: Grades 9-12] Fitness is reproductive success — the number of viable offspring produced by an individual in comparison to other individuals in a population/species.
  • [Mechanisms of evolution: Grades 13-16] An individual's fitness (or relative fitness) is the contribution that individual makes to the gene pool of the next generation relative to other individuals in the population.
  • [Mechanisms of evolution: Grades 13-16] Occasionally offspring, known as hybrids, result from matings between distinct species or between distinct parental forms.
  • [Mechanisms of evolution: Grades 13-16] Some hybrids have increased fitness relative to their parents.
  • [Mechanisms of evolution: Grades 13-16] Some hybrids have decreased fitness relative to their parents.

There are no NGSS/DCI concepts currently linked to this resource.

This article includes a set of discussion and extension questions for use in class. It also includes hints about related lessons that might be used in conjunction with this one. Get more tips for using Evo in the News articles in your classroom.