[phoboser]

Yes, but assuming that mutation rate just magically went to zero, evolution wouldn't immediately ("as soon as") stop, or stop at all until extinction because the enviorment constantly changes.

Yes it would be artificial selection, more precise but in principle the same as dog breeding.

[DewFuel]

	Originally Posted by phoboser To view links or images in this forum your post count must be 2 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.
	All that is needed is genetic variation in the population. Those paradigmatic Galapagos finches were dealing with changing frequencies of existing alleles, not new mutations.

Correct. All that is needed is genetic variation in a population. If, in a hypothetical situation, mutations ceased to exist, natural selection would continue until the variation in a given population did not change (allele fixation).

Afterwards, natural selection would not apply, since there are no new sources of alleles AND the allele frequencies are fixed. Therefore there wouldn't be non-random mating, since all individuals would pretty much be equal in all aspects (after Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium sets in).

Eventually, I would imagine there would be some random selection processes that would re-establish a non-equilibrium state (population drift, sudden climate changes, natural catastrophes, etc...)

[Vagrant]

	Originally Posted by blueback To view links or images in this forum your post count must be 2 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.
	But without mutation there wouldn't be any genetic diversity in the population in the first place. Isn't it the perpetual low-level of mutation that maintains genetic diversity, which then allows for a population to be winnowed down to the members randomly most fit for a particular environment?

Requirements for no evolution:


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• No Non-random mating
• No mutation
• No migration
• No selection

Even if there was no mutation, with the rest still in place, there would be evolution. You need to meet ALL of the above criteria for no evolution to occur.

	If we learned how to manipulate fetal DNA to add or remove qualities, would that be evolution?

Assuming it spread to the rest of the population, yes. Otherwise no. Evolution only deals with populations -- not individuals.