sep 1, 1835 - C. Darwin notices various finches
Description:
A stop on Darwin's voyage was at the Galapagos Islands. While there he noticed that the finches on the islands all had unique beaks for various food types that were present on the island. These finch types were different from the mainland finch he had seen in South America. While he had not realized it yet, this discovery would help him with his theory of evolution later on. The explanation for why the animals on the island evolved so differently from the mainland finch was because they adapted to the different food types. The finches that could compete better in the struggle for food survived more and passed on their heritable traits. Thus, the population of finches on the island gradually changed to only have these variations of beaks, unique to their island.
Added to timeline:
History of Evolution Timeline
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