Evolution Theories

EVOLUTION BY NATURAL SELECTION

If Charles Darwin found the African starfish flower during his travels, he would explain the special adaptation of attracting flies though his theory of evolution by natural selection. Natural selection is the means by which beneficial variations in a population tend to be persevered while unfavourable variations tend to be lost. Therefore, the organisms with the favourable variations are better adapted to the environment which allows them to survive and produce offspring that will have the same favourable traits. The organisms with the unfavourable variations will not be able to survive and be less populated  (to the point of extinction) unless conditions change. 

Plausible Description:

1. Variation: According to Darwins theory, it is a possibility that not all the African starfish flowers had the scent and colour that resembles decaying animal corpse.  Some of the flowers were odourless, emitted a different type of scent, or their flowers had different colour. This is called variation because organisms of the same species exhibited different type of traits. 
2. Resources are limited:  The biggest obstacle for these plants was reproduction because their native biomes only offered a limited amount of pollinators, and most of them are flies. 
3. The "Fittest " Survive :  According to Darwin, resources will favour individuals with some variations over others. In this case, the flies are attracted to the type of African starfish flowers that will omit a stench and have an appearance that resembles carrion since flies haunt decaying meat as food. This gives an opportunity for the flower with these properties to reproduce by pollination and the flowers without these qualities will have no chance of reproducing.  
4. Inhertiance of Trait : The favourable traits will be passed on from the parent to the offspring, and the flowers without the traits will eventually die without having the chance to reproduce. Slowly, all the african starfish flowers will have the unique properties that attract flies.

LAKARCKIAN EVOLUTION 

James Baptiste Lamarck's reason for evolution involves the inheritance of acquired traits.  According to his theory, characteristics that are acquired during an organisms lifetime  (due to environmental conditions) that  can be passed onto its offspring. The offspring would receive the trait, possible enhance it even more, and pass it on their offspring/ 

Plausible Description:  If Lamarck had seen this plant, he would have believed that the African starfish flower's ancestors may have acquired the unique colour and scent during their lifetime.  Since the starfish are stationed at one spot, maybe the flowers may have gotten the trait as a result of staying under a  hot and dry climate with little rain for a long period of time. This acquired trait will be passed on to the next generation. 

MODERN SYNTHESIS: 

Modern synthesis is similar to Dawrins theory of evolution. In fact it supports it because mordern synthesis includes genetics and how mutations maintain and provide genetic variaiton amongst indivudals in a population.  They believe natural selection is the dominant evolutionary force, but there other forces such as genetic flow and genetic drift that also contribute to evolution.  According to this teory, evolution occurs by the accumulation of small genetic changes. 

Plausible Description:   A possible explanation for the colur and scent is that it was a result after the plant evovled through mutations since it affects allele frequency. The colur and scent may have been a mutation that was favourable to the flies and therefore the same trait was passed on to future geneerations. Another reason behind this adapatation is has to do with Mendelians Law.The alleles that expresses this particular colur and scent are dominant, which means there is a 50% to 100% chance that the offspring will have the same colur and scent.