SPECIATION

GENETIC VARIATION LEADS TO EVOLUTION OF NEW SPECIES OR SPECIATION. SPECIATION IS THE PROCESS THAT SEPARATES GENETIC VARIATION INTO DISTINCT UNITS, OR SPECIES. IN SPECIATION, THE ORIGINAL POPULATION OF ORGANISMS WITH SIMILAR GENES, CALLED GENE POOL, IS DIVIDED INTO TWO OR MORE GENE POOLS. EACH OF THIS GENE POOL ACQUIRES A NEW SET OF CHARACTERISTICS THROUGH MUTATION AND SELECTION. SPECIATION FOLLOWS MOST COMMONLY FROM THE PHYSICAL DIVISION OF A GENE POOL. THE SEPARATION INHIBITS INTERBREEDING BETWEEN INDIVIDUALS  IN TWO POPULATIONS. IN TIME, ONE OR BOTH POPULATIONS CHANGE ENOUGH TO PROHIBIT INTERBREEDING.

SPECIATION IS THEREFORE THE PROCESS OF EVOLUTIONARY DIFFERENTIATION BETWEEN POPULATIONS, WHICH MAY RESULT IN ONE OLDER SPECIES BECOMING SPLIT INTO TWO OR MORE NEW ONES.

GENETICISTS DEFINE A POPULATION  OF SPECIES  AS A ' A REPRODUCTIVE COMMUNITY SHARING A COMMON CHARACTERISTIC GENE POOL.' EACH LOCAL POPULATION IS DIFFERENT FROM THE OTHER; THROUGH NOT EASILY DISTINGUISHABLE FROM  ONE ANOTHER, AND THEREFORE ARE GIVEN NO FORMAL NAMES.