Speciation

Speciation is the evolutionary process that results in new species. Evolution, specifically macroevolution, can be looked at as the origin of species. The pattern of speciation is a branching tree of historical relatedness.

Speciation occurs when two populations of a parent species evolve divergently after becoming reproductively isolated. Reproductive isolation can be due to allopatric (geographic) speciation, hybridization, or polyploidy, that is chromosome multiplication.

Creationists' views
Creationists assert that, despite the claims of evolutionists, speciation does not prove evolution. Creation Ministries International (CMI) notes that "it’s important to stress that speciation has nothing to do with real evolution (GTE), because it involves sorting and loss of genetic information, rather than new information."

In the "biblical creation/Fall/Flood/migration model" speciation represents a loss of genetic variation. CMI explains that "all the modern varieties of land vertebrates must have descended from comparatively few animals that disembarked from the ark only around 4,500 years ago." Note that this model implies all of the genetic variation seen today existed in the few survivors of the worldwide flood, an apparent contradiction.

References and external links

 * "The Process of Speciation." University of Michigan