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Explore speciation with The Amoeba Sisters. This video discusses sympatric and allopatric speciation and covers several types of isolation types including behavioral, temporal, and habitat isolations.

This case study teaches students about allopatric speciation through an investigation of the benthic and limnetic sticklebacks of Paxton Lake, which are among the youngest species on Earth, diverging from each other after the Pleistocene glaciers melted and the Gulf Islands formed. Researchers at the University of British Columbia have carried out a variety of fascinating studies on these hardy little fish. Results from this research (formatted as data sheets included in the teaching notes) are provided to students who design experiments and then compare actual data to investigate why benthic and limnetic sticklebacks seldom interbreed in Paxton Lake. Developed for a first-year biology course for majors organized around the general theme of evolution and the history of life on Earth, this case study is an updated version of another case in the collection, "Something's Fishy in Paxton Lake" (Sharp, 2001). The current version is especially suited for a flipped classroom in which students prepare for class ahead of time with a reading assignment that also involves the viewing of a video by the case authors that introduces the mechanisms of allopatric speciation.

Paul Andersen details the evolutionary processes of speciation and extinction. Stickleback evolution in Lake Loberg is used as example of rapid speciation. Adaptive radiation is illustrated using the Hawaiian honeycreeper. A brief discussion of extinctions and mass extinctions is also included.

The anole lizards of the Caribbean islands represent a group of about 150 closely related species, most of which evolved within the past 50 million years from a single colonizing species. Different processes, including geographic isolation, adaptation to different environments, and reproductive isolation, play a role in anole speciation. 

This directed case study in PowerPoint format focusses on the London Underground Mosquito, Culex molestus, and its potential relationship to the common mosquito, Culex pipiens, in order to explore the topics of evolution, reproductive isolation, and speciation. As the story unfolds, the case mirrors the process of science. The students receive some initial data and observations collected by Byrne and Nichols in London. Based on these observations, the students then form a hypothesis and design an experiment. Finally, they receive more data collected by Becker et al. and draw conclusions.

web based activity on speciation and adaptive radiation

The virtual lab includes four modules that investigate different concepts in evolutionary biology, including adaptation, convergent evolution, phylogenetic analysis, reproductive isolation, and speciation. Each module involves data collection, calculations, analysis and answering questions. The "Educators" tab includes lists of key concepts and learning objectives and detailed suggestions for incorporating the lab in your instruction.

2:40 video The anole lizards of the Caribbean islands represent a group of about 150 closely related species, most of which evolved within the past 50 million years from a single colonizing species.

Video segments describing evolution in engaging cartoon format

tutorial

In the closing sentence of "The Origin of Species," Charles Darwin marvels at the process of evolution, observing how "from so simple a beginning endless forms most beautiful and most wonderful have been, and are being, evolved." Few people would describe bedbugs as most beautiful or most wonderful. Yet this blood-feeding pest may represent an exceptional chance to observe the emergence of Darwin's "endless forms": New research indicates that some bedbugs are well on their way to becoming a new species.

This case study focuses on the intersection of defining a scientific species and defining a legal species. The compelling story of Lolita, an orca whale in captivity, is used to highlight the legal significance of species declaration. Students will work through scientific species definitions and data on Orca whales before deciding if Orca whales should be considered as one or several species. After an introduction to Lolita and a mock town hall meeting, students are thrown into the real life situation of contemplating the fate of an Orca in captivity that suddenly has protected legal status. This case was developed for use in a first-year biology course focusing on ecology, genetics, and evolution. It also could be used in upper or lower division courses on ecology, evolution, or conservation.