Today there are 13 different species of finch on the Galápagos Islands off the coast of Ecuador. These 13 species evolved from a single species of finch that arrived on the islands two million years ago. During this lesson the students will first analyze the characteristics of the 13 species of finch found on the Galápagos Islands. Then they will conduct research and activities explaining the ideas of natural selection and variation. Based on this information, and their own observations, they will construct an argument and make predictions about the role of natural selection on the evolution of finch populations. As their final project, they create a graphic representation of the process that led to 13 different finch species as a museum style stand-alone display.
