Several species of Caribbean Anoline lizards have evolved from a single ancestral species. The species occupy a wide variety of ecological niches, such as tree trunks and the ground, or tree trunks only, or tree trunks and the crown of trees, etc. This type of allopatric speciation is called
A) adaptive radiation.
B) alloploidy.
C) autoploidy.
D) hybridization.

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

Adaptive radiation is the process by which a single ancestral species diversifies into many new species, each occupying a different ecological niche. The fact that the Caribbean Anoline lizards have evolved into different species, each occupying a different ecological niche, is a classic example of adaptive radiation. Alloploidy, autoploidy, and hybridization are all mechanisms of speciation, but they do not apply to this specific case of allopatric speciation.

Several Species of Caribbean Anoline Lizards Have Evolved from a Single