Does evolution have a Machiavellian streak?

Source: A Fraction of the Whole by Steve Toltz
In yet another surprise for those who think I know it all (especially me), I've never read Machiavelli. I get the context and all, but I never had much use for history, being such a binary thinker my whole life...now, I'm starting to think I'm missing a few things in my education. There's that attention span thing to worry about, though.