--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I am fully convinced that species are not…" description: "\"“I am fully convinced that species are not immutable; but that those belonging to what are called the same genera are lineal descendants of some other ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/965/charles-darwin-507_natural-selection_i-am-fully-convinced-that-species-are-no_1912843.jpg" --- # I am fully convinced that species are not immutable; but… ![“I am fully convinced that species are not immutable; but that those belonging to what are called the same genera are lineal descendants of some other and generally extinct species, in the same manner as the acknowledged varieties of any one species are the descendants of that species. Furthermore…” quote by Charles Darwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/965/charles-darwin-507_natural-selection_i-am-fully-convinced-that-species-are-no_1912843.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/965/charles-darwin-507_natural-selection_i-am-fully-convinced-that-species-are-no_1912843.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/965/charles-darwin-507_natural-selection_i-am-fully-convinced-that-species-are-no_1912843.jpg) > ““I am fully convinced that species are not immutable; but that those belonging to what are called the same genera are lineal descendants of some other and generally extinct species, in the same manner as the acknowledged varieties of any one species are the descendants of that species. Furthermore, I am convinced that natural selection has been the most important, but not the exclusive, means of modification.”” [Charles Darwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-darwin/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Species evolve over time, with new species descending from extinct ancestors, and natural selection is a key driver though not the only one. **In simple terms:** Species change; natural selection is important. Key Takeaway Recognize evolution and its mechanisms. Themes evolution natural selection biology Mood thoughtful inquisitive Type scientific educational When to use this quote - education - science communication - policy making - environmental conservation Key Concepts phylogeny descent with modification adaptation Questions to Reflect On - How does natural selection interact with other evolutionary forces? - What evidence supports species change over time? A Different Perspective Evolutionary theory also involves genetic drift and gene flow. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Called Genera](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/called-genera-2890834/) [Convinced Species](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/convinced-species-2890833/) [Evolution](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/evolution/) [Natural selection](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/natural-selection/) [Species Descendants](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/species-descendants-2890832/) [Species Furthermore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/species-furthermore-2890835/) [Species Immutable](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/species-immutable-2890831/) ## Related quotes > [“Although much remains obscure, and will long remain obscure, I can entertain no doubt, after the most deliberate study and dispassionate judgment of which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-darwin/although-much-remains-obscure-and-will-long-remain-obscure-i-can/) [Charles Darwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-darwin/) > [It may be said that natural selection is daily and hourly scrutinizing, throughout the world, every variation, even the slightest; rejecting that which is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-darwin/it-may-be-said-that-natural-selection-is-daily-and-hourly/) [Charles Darwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-darwin/) > [Owing to this struggle for life, any variation, however slight and from whatever cause proceeding, if it be in any degree profitable to an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-darwin/owing-to-this-struggle-for-life-any-variation-however-slight-and-from/) [Charles Darwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-darwin/) > [I think it can be shown that there is such an unerring power at work in Natural Selection, which selects exclusively for the good…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-darwin/i-think-it-can-be-shown-that-there-is-such-an-unerring-power-at-work/) [Charles Darwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-darwin/) > [The moral faculties are generally esteemed, and with justice, as of higher value than the intellectual powers. But we should always bear in mind…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-darwin/the-moral-faculties-are-generally-esteemed-and-with-justice-as-of/) [Charles Darwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-darwin/) > [Disbelief crept over me at a very slow rate, but at last it was complete.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-darwin/disbelief-crept-over-me-at-a-very-slow-rate-but-at-last-it-was/) [Charles Darwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-darwin/) > [“I fully agree with all that you say on the advantages of H. Spencer's excellent expression of 'the survival of the fittest.' This, however,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-darwin/i-fully-agree-with-all-that-you-say-on-the-advantages-of-h-spencer-s/) [Charles Darwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-darwin/) > [Sympathy will have been increased through natural selection](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-darwin/sympathy-will-have-been-increased-through-natural-selection/) [Charles Darwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-darwin/) > [I have called this principle, by which each slight variation, if useful, is preserved, by the term of Natural Selection.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-darwin/i-have-called-this-principle-by-which-each-slight-variation-if-useful/) [Charles Darwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-darwin/) > [When it was first said that the sun stood still and world turned round, the common sense of mankind declared the doctrine false; but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-darwin/when-it-was-first-said-that-the-sun-stood-still-and-world-turned/) [Charles Darwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-darwin/) > [“Thus, as I believe, natural selection will tend in the long run to reduce any part of the organisation, as soon as it becomes,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-darwin/thus-as-i-believe-natural-selection-will-tend-in-the-long-run-to/) [Charles Darwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-darwin/) > [Great is the power of steady misrepresentation; but the history of science shows that fortunately this power does not long endure.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-darwin/great-is-the-power-of-steady-misrepresentation-but-the-history-of/) [Charles Darwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-darwin/) > [The survival or preservation of certain favoured words in the struggle for existence is natural selection.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-darwin/the-survival-or-preservation-of-certain-favoured-words-in-the/) [Charles Darwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-darwin/) > [To suppose that the eye could have been formed by natural selection, seems, I freely confess, absurd in the highest possible degree](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-darwin/to-suppose-that-the-eye-could-have-been-formed-by-natural-selection/) [Charles Darwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-darwin/) > [I think it inevitably follows, that as new species in the course of time are formed through natural selection, others will become rarer and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-darwin/i-think-it-inevitably-follows-that-as-new-species-in-the-course-of/) [Charles Darwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-darwin/) ## More by Charles Darwin > [The love for all living creatures is the most noble attribute of man.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-darwin/the-love-for-all-living-creatures-is-the-most-noble-attribute-of-man/) [Charles Darwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-darwin/) > [The main conclusion here arrived at ... is that man is descended from some less highly organized form.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-darwin/the-main-conclusion-here-arrived-at-is-that-man-is-descended-from/) [Charles Darwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-darwin/) > [So great is the economy of nature, that most flowers which are fertilised by crepuscular or nocturnal insects emit their odour chiefly or exclusively…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-darwin/so-great-is-the-economy-of-nature-that-most-flowers-which-are/) [Charles Darwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-darwin/) > [I see no good reasons why the views given in this volume should shock the religious views of anyone.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-darwin/i-see-no-good-reasons-why-the-views-given-in-this-volume-should-shock/) [Charles Darwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-darwin/) > [I am quite conscious that my speculations run beyond the bounds of true science…It is a mere rag of an hypothesis with as many…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-darwin/i-am-quite-conscious-that-my-speculations-run-beyond-the-bounds-of/) [Charles Darwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-darwin/) > [If worms have the power of acquiring some notion, however rude, of the shape of an object and over their burrows, as seems the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-darwin/if-worms-have-the-power-of-acquiring-some-notion-however-rude-of-the/) [Charles Darwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-darwin/) > [We can allow satellites, planets, suns, universe, nay whole systems of universes, to be governed by laws, but the smallest insect, we wish to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-darwin/we-can-allow-satellites-planets-suns-universe-nay-whole-systems-of/) [Charles Darwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-darwin/) > [Formerly Milton's Paradise Lost had been my chief favourite, and in my excursions during the voyage of the Beagle, when I could take only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-darwin/formerly-milton-s-paradise-lost-had-been-my-chief-favourite-and-in-my/) [Charles Darwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-darwin/) > [May we not suspect that the vague but very real fears of children, which are quite independent of experience, are the inherited effects of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-darwin/may-we-not-suspect-that-the-vague-but-very-real-fears-of-children/) [Charles Darwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-darwin/) > [It may be said that natural selection is daily and hourly scrutinizing, throughout the world, every variation, even the slightest; rejecting that which is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-darwin/it-may-be-said-that-natural-selection-is-daily-and-hourly/) [Charles Darwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-darwin/) > [“Darwin, landing in Brazil in 1832, had a similar reaction, colored by his reading of his predecessor." Humboldt's glorious descriptions are & will for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-darwin/darwin-landing-in-brazil-in-1832-had-a-similar-reaction-colored-by/) [Charles Darwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-darwin/) > [...all nature is perverse & will not do as I wish it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-darwin/all-nature-is-perverse-will-not-do-as-i-wish-it/) [Charles Darwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-darwin/) > [“To admit that species generally become rare before they become extinct—to feel no surprise at the comparative rarity of one species with another, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-darwin/to-admit-that-species-generally-become-rare-before-they-become/) [Charles Darwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-darwin/) > [To suppose that the eye could have been formed by natural selection, seems, I freely confess, absurd in the highest possible degree](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-darwin/to-suppose-that-the-eye-could-have-been-formed-by-natural-selection/) [Charles Darwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-darwin/) > [It is interesting to contemplate an entangled bank clothed with many plants of many kinds with birds singing on the bushes, with various insects…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-darwin/it-is-interesting-to-contemplate-an-entangled-bank-clothed-with-many/) [Charles Darwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-darwin/) [Explore all 497 Charles Darwin quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-darwin/) ## More Evolution quotes > [I rap when I'm rich. I rap when I'm broke. I rap when I'm bullshit in the street. I rap about only having one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/killer-mike/i-rap-when-i-m-rich-i-rap-when-i-m-broke-i-rap-when-i-m-bullshit-in/) [Killer Mike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/killer-mike/) > [At the deepest level, all living things that have ever been looked at have the same DNA code. And many of the same genes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/at-the-deepest-level-all-living-things-that-have-ever-been-looked-at/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [“A question for Christians who accept evolution: When did we gain a "soul"? Did Homo habilis have a soul? Homo ergaster? Did God only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-g-mcafee/a-question-for-christians-who-accept-evolution-when-did-we-gain-a/) [David G. 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The causes of youth violence are working parents who put their kids into daycare,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-delay/guns-have-little-or-nothing-to-do-with-juvenile-violence-the-causes/) [Tom DeLay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-delay/) > [The fact -- not theory -- that evolution has occurred and the Darwinian theory as to how it occurred have become so confused in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-gaylord-simpson/the-fact-not-theory-that-evolution-has-occurred-and-the-darwinian/) [George Gaylord Simpson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-gaylord-simpson/) > [Perhaps no order of mammals presents us with so extraordinary a series of gradations as this \[step by step, from humans to apes to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-huxley/perhaps-no-order-of-mammals-presents-us-with-so-extraordinary-a/) [Thomas Huxley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-huxley/) > [Evolution happens in jumps, very rapidly.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marilyn-ferguson/evolution-happens-in-jumps-very-rapidly/) [Marilyn Ferguson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marilyn-ferguson/) > [The true nature of soul is right knowledge, right faith and right conduct. 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