After Darwin published The Origin of Species, the supporting evidence for his ideas was so complete that common descent became a __________ accepted by most biologists. The Acceptance of Common Descent After Darwin’s The Origin of Species

The acceptance of common descent after Darwin’s The Origin of Species

After Darwin’s 1859 publication of On the Origin of Species, the evidence to support his theory of common descendence has been so convincing that almost all biologists now accept it. Common descent is the belief that all life forms share an ancestor and that natural selection drives the evolution of the species. Many scientists initially reacted skeptically to this idea, because it was inconsistent with the notion that all organisms are created from the same source. Many studies that have supported the theory of common descent were conducted since. The fossil record, for example, supports the idea of common descent. It provides evidence that the evolution of different species has occurred over time (Ferrari 2016,). In addition, the discovery of DNA and its similarities among different organisms has allowed for the comparison of genetic sequences between species, further supporting the idea of common descent (Gonçalves et al., 2021). Many biologists have accepted common descent based on all this evidence. Evolutionary biology has made further advances since common descent was accepted. Darwin, 1859, noted that it is vital to know the evolution of life in order to comprehend the diverse life forms on Earth. Acceptance of common descent allows for further investigation of evolution and study of Earth’s history. Cont…