Meaning of Red Queen hypothesis | Babel Free

Definitions

An evolutionary hypothesis which proposes that organisms must constantly adapt, evolve, and proliferate not merely to gain reproductive advantage, but also simply to survive while pitted against other evolving organisms in an ever-changing environment.

Equivalents

Examples

“Stenseth and Maynard Smith (1984) reformulated this hypothesis by including the idea of evolutionary lag and dismissing Van Valen's zero-sum assumption. They contrast the Red-Queen hypothesis with the stationary hypothesis, q.v. Hoffman and Kitchell (1984 in Lewin 1985a, 400) offer some support for the Red-Queen hypothesis.”

“We extend the Red Queen hypothesis, a mechanism proposed to maintain genetic diversity at the population level, to explain diversity at the community level.”

“The Red Queen hypothesis defines evolution as a kind of arms race, in which species must constantly evolve and adapt merely to survive.”

CEFR level