EVOLUTION: BIO 345 EXAM #3

Which observation would be evidence for allopatric speciation among finch species of the Galápagos Islands? a) No pairs of sister species formed on the same island. b) The birds are closely related to birds found on the mainland. c) Pairs of sister species can be found on adjacent islands. d) Many different species have been found on the islands. e) Specific beak sizes are adaptations to the seeds of different species.

a) No pairs of sister species formed on the same island.

Which of the following is most likely to favor the evolution of highly virulent parasites? a) Transmission between unrelated members of the population b) Transmission from parent to offspring c) Multilevel selection (both within and among populations, occupying different hosts) d) Strong effects on a subset of a population with a specific susceptible genotype e) Mutualism between hosts and parasites

a) Transmission between unrelated members of the population

The Red Queen hypothesis is often used to explain a) coevolution in parasite-host interactions. b) ecological character displacement. c) aposematic coloration. d) Batesian mimicry. e) interference competition among predators.

a) coevolution in parasite-host interactions.

According to the biological species concept, speciation consists of the evolution of biological barriers to gene flow. The most important distinction is between _______ and _______ barriers. a) prezygotic; postzygotic b) male; female c) ecological; evolutionary d) temporal; spatial e) sexual selection; natural selection

a) prezygotic; postzygotic

In the study of cultural evolution, what is a "meme"? a.A unit of cultural inheritance b.A humorous piece of media that is rapidly spread on the internet c.Early attempts at music and art by human ancestors d.Information spread as a disease rather than as inheritance of a gene e.Genetic memory that we have inherited from our ancestors and use without realizing it

a. A unit of cultural inheritance

3. The biological species concept has been widely adopted, but it also has some practical difficulties. Which of the following is not one of these difficulties? a. The concept is poorly defined. b. The concept cannot be applied to extinct species. c. Many populations are allopatric. d. The concept does not apply to clonal organisms. e. Testing reproductive isolation in the lab is not always feasible.

a. The concept is poorly defined.

Most examples of polyploidy speciation involve a. plants. b. mammals. c. arthropods. d. prokaryotes. e. fungi.

a. plants.

Stickleback fish found in lakes rapidly evolve a low armor plate morphology when compared to marine populations. Analysis of the gene responsible shows that populations with low plating form one clade and marine populations form another. However, gene trees formed with other genes show that the low plating phenotype probably evolved independently multiple times. How have scientists resolved these contradictory gene trees? a.A single origin of the low plating gene in the oceanic population that remained at a low frequency until lakes were colonized. Then the gene independently became fixed in each. b.The mutation first appeared in a single lake, but gene flow between lakes connected by rivers has spread the mutation to new populations where it increased in frequency. c.High armor evolved independently from a low armor state in the oceanic population, where it increased in frequency to near fixation. d.All of the populations in lakes are very closely related. The other genes suggesting different topologies of relatedness are biased by geographic covariation.

a.A single origin of the low plating gene in the oceanic population that remained at a low frequency until lakes were colonized. Then the gene independently became fixed in each.

What is the theory for the evolution of anxiety disorders? a.As a result of an evolutionary cost/benefit analysis of anxiety b.Anxiety developed as a reaction to stress c.Random mutation caused the evolution of anxiety d.None of the above

a.As a result of an evolutionary cost/benefit analysis of anxiety

Which genera is likely the most recent ancestor of the genus Homo? a.Australopithecus b.Ardipithecus c.Pan d.Sahelanthropus

a.Australopithecus

Stephen Jay Gould suggested that if we were to replay the "tape of life," the course of events that we know as "history" might play themselves out very differently. Which statement supports this idea? a.Historical contingency suggests that small differences in random events can result in large downstream differences. b.Many organisms have evolved similar phenotypes through the process of convergent evolution. c.Organisms all experience the same physical constraints (e.g., gravity) and respond to them similarly. d.There are finite numbers of solutions to certain engineering problems. e.Organisms such as crows, parrots, and dolphins show intelligence, so it is likely that even in the absence of humans, complex cognition would have evolved in other lineages.

a.Historical contingency suggests that small differences in random events can result in large downstream differences.

Which of the following is an example of allopatric speciation? a) Speciation observed in the fossil record, such as during the evolution of fully aquatic whales from a terrestrial ancestor b) Evolution of genetic reproductive barriers between populations of angelfish isolated on either side of the Isthmus of Panama c) Speciation as a result of mating preference by female cichlids within a single African rift lake d) Evolution of genetic reproductive barriers within a single, initially panmictic population of flies that use different host plants e) Reproductive isolation progressively increases in a lizard population with differing habitats on opposite ends of its range

b) Evolution of genetic reproductive barriers between populations of angelfish isolated on either side of the Isthmus of Panama

Eusociality occurs in multiple species of insects. What is the characteristic of wasps, bees, and ants that facilitates the presence of sterile workers? a) Diapause (a period of suspended development) b) Haplodiploidy c) Polyandry d) Promiscuous mating e) High mutation rates

b) Haplodiploidy

Pre-eclampsia is a pregnancy complication that is often explained as resulting from parent-offspring conflict. What underlies this conflict? a) The mother wants to provide the fetus with plenty of resources. b) The fetus demands more resources from the mother than would be optimal for her. c) The fetus rejects excess resources to assist its siblings. d) Single pregnancies are much more common than multiple pregnancies (i.e., twins). e) Women gain more fitness (number of descendants) from earlier pregnancies than from later ones.

b) The fetus demands more resources from the mother than would be optimal for her.

Reproductive isolation as a result of Dobzhansky-Muller incompatibility is caused by _______. a) the failure of individuals of different lineages to recognize one another as potential mates. b) the inability of two or more loci from different lineages to function well together. c) reduced fertility because of chromosomal mismatch and reorganization. d) the inability of organisms from different lineages to fit their genitalia together. e) the lower fitness of hybrids as a result of underdominance.

b) the inability of two or more loci from different lineages to function well together.

Which of the following would be an example of an extended phenotype? a.The vein patterns on the wings of a fruit fly. b.An increase in sexual activity due to infection with a sexually transmitted pathogen. c.The beak shape of a finch, d.The structure of the leg muscles of a cheetah. e.The pattern on a beaver's tail.

b. An increase in sexual activity due to infection with a sexually transmitted pathogen.

The field of evolutionary psychology seeks to understand _____ a. The history of psychology and how it evolved from earlier attempts to understand the mind b. How behaviors function as adaptive modules in humans c. How people adapt to novel challenges in their personal life d. How exposure to evolutionary theory affects the social development of religious and nonreligious students

b. How behaviors function as adaptive modules in humans

Which trait of humans is not shared by the LUCA? a.Nucleic acids as the material basis of inheritance b.Eukaryotic cell structure c.Metabolism uses l-isomers of proteins exclusively d.The codons of the genetic code e.Humans share all of the above traits with the LUCA

b.Eukaryotic cell structure

Which piece of evidence does not support the theory of recent (ca. 200,000 years ago) African origin of humans? a.Mitochondrial DNA sequences coalesce to Africa populations about 125,000 years ago b.Linkage disequilibrium of nuclear genes gets progressively lower as one measures populations farther from Africa c.Haplotype diversity of nuclear genes is greatest in Africa d.Fossils of modern humans older than 60,000 years are found only in Africa e.Non-African populations show reduced heterozygosity compared to African populations.

b.Linkage disequilibrium of nuclear genes gets progressively lower as one measures populations farther from Africa

Which of the following is a case of altruism? a) A plant releases allelopathic chemicals, harming its competitors and itself. b) A shrimp digs a burrow that it shares with a goby that keeps watch for predators. c) A prairie dog gives up a foraging opportunity to keep watch for predators. d) Individuals in a flock of birds are less susceptible to predators than individuals alone. e) A baby bird aggressively begs, resulting in less food available to its siblings.

c) A prairie dog gives up a foraging opportunity to keep watch for predators.

You collect individuals from different allopatric populations of a leaf-eating beetle. In the laboratory, you conduct mate-choice experiments to assess levels of reproductive isolation among beetles from different populations. Assuming that ecological speciation occurred in the wild, which pattern should you expect? a) No reproductive isolation b) More reproductive isolation among populations that share similar habitats c) Less reproductive isolation among populations that share similar habitats d) Reproductive isolation that is independent of habitat type e) Complete reproductive isolation among all populations

c) Less reproductive isolation among populations that share similar habitats

Which mode of speciation involves intermediate levels of gene flow? a) Sympatric speciation b) Founder effect speciation c) Parapatric speciation d) Cytological divergence e) Allopatric speciation

c) Parapatric speciation

Which statement is the least likely explanation for the evolution of behaviors in which subordinate male animals assist dominant males defending mating territories or in mating displays? a) Dominant males occasionally allow subordinate males to mate with females. b) Subordinate males succeed dominant males, inheriting their territory, when they die. c) The subordinate males mistake the dominant males for females. d) Subordinate males are related to dominant males and benefit indirectly by inclusive fitness. e) Subordinate males occasionally have successful "sneak" copulations with females.

c) The subordinate males mistake the dominant males for females.

In North America, hawthorn trees were the ancestral hosts of the apple maggot fly (Rhagoletis pomonella). In the last 150 years, however, cultivated apples have become a host for some populations of R. pomonella. What factor may have allowed the colonization of apples as a new host plant, and thus subsequent disruptive selection based on resource use? a) Intense pesticide use in some hawthorn-producing regions forced the flies to seek new hosts. b) In the Southeast, a blight killed hawthorn populations, and small populations of flies were able to adapt to apple use. c) The timing of reproduction in Mexican hawthorn feeding populations overlaps with apple fruiting in the Northeast.

c) The timing of reproduction in Mexican hawthorn feeding populations overlaps with apple fruiting in the Northeast.

Which is an example of Müllerian mimicry? a) A grasshopper mimics the shape and scent of an ant to infiltrate their nest. b) A nonvenomous king snake mimics the highly venomous coral snake as a defensive mechanism. c) The unpalatable viceroy butterfly mimics the poisonous monarch butterfly. d) Weeds mimic the form and color of an agricultural plant to avoid being weeded by the farmer. e) A skunk uses white and black as coloration to warn predators that dealing with them will be unpleasant.

c) The unpalatable viceroy butterfly mimics the poisonous monarch butterfly.

Most models of sympatric speciation postulate the existence of a) high levels of recombination between loci. b) unequal numbers of males and females. c) disruptive selection based on resource use. d) geographical barriers between populations. e) extinction and recolonization of local populations.

c) disruptive selection based on resource use.

Plants that evolved resistance to herbivores were able to diversify rapidly. Some butterflies overcame these defenses and also diversified rapidly. This is an example of a) specific coevolution. b) diffuse coevolution. c) escape-and-radiate coevolution. d) guild evolution. e) simple coevolution.

c) escape-and-radiate coevolution.

Most models of sympatric speciation postulate the existence of a.Extinction and recolonization of local populations b. Geographical barriers between populations c. Disruptive selection based on resource use d. High levels of recombination between loci e. Unequal numbers of males and females

c. Disruptive selection based on resource use

There has been natural selection on humans to spend a lot of effort and resources once caring for our children. This implies that ____ a.Caring for children is morally good. b.We are tempted not to care for our children, but we do it because (most of us) value it as a moral good. c.The fact that we have evolved to care for our children says nothing about whether that behavior is good or bad. d.We should have more children.

c. The fact that we have evolved to care for our children says nothing about whether that behavior is good or bad.

Which mode of speciation involves intermediate levels of gene flow? a.Allopatric speciation b.Sympatric speciation c.Parapatric speciation d. Founder effect speciation

c. parapatric speciation

According to the figure, which organism is the closest living relative to humans? a.Bonobo b.Gorilla c.Bonobos and chimpanzees, equally d.Gorillas and bonobos, equally e.Chimpanzees

c.Bonobos and chimpanzees, equally

Which statement best explains why modern Europeans, Asians, or Africans lack Denisovan DNA in their genome? a.Denisovans never interbred with any population of Homo sapiens b.Denisovans DNA was eliminated from those populations by strong purifying selection. c.Denisovans interbred only with the population whose ancestors are Melanesians d.Neanderthal genes and Denisovan genes are incompatible, so modern populations have one or the other.

c.Denisovans interbred only with the population whose ancestors are Melanesians

Which complication to phylogenetic inference is most likely to be widespread in a group of species that have undergone an evolutionary radiation? a.Introgression of genes between species b.High rates of similarity because of homoplasy c.Incomplete lineage sorting d.Great variability of the rates of molecular evolution e.None of these are consistently an issue in evolutionary radiations

c.Incomplete lineage sorting

Evolutionary biologists and geologists recognize the "big five" mass extinctions and are actively studying a potential sixth. Which of these describes that potential sixth mass extinction? a.The extinction that included the dinosaurs b.The great flood of Noah c.The current extinctions, caused primarily by human activities d.The mass extinction that occurred in the Proterozoic, before animal life

c.The current extinctions, caused primarily by human activities

You extract DNA from human bones in an ancient village buried by volcanic ash. You discover that there is an extremely high frequency of the LCT allele for lactase persistence. What might you conclude about the population? a.This population is likely the source of the high frequency of the LCT gene in Northern Europe b.The village could not be more than 4500 years old. c.The members of this population likely used domesticated livestock for their milk. d.The villagers had a diet rich in wheat or another domesticated crop. e.The population could not have been under strong selection because the gene was not fixed.

c.The members of this population likely used domesticated livestock for their milk.

Why does reinforcement involve a strengthening of prezygotic, rather than postzygotic, isolation? a) Assortative mating is uncommon. b) The rewards of postzygotic isolation are always much smaller than those of prezygotic isolation. c) Postzygotic isolation has only a minimal evolutionary impact. d) Alleles that prevent interbreeding are more likely to be inherited by viable, nonhybrid offspring than alleles that permit random mating. e) Reinforcement occurs only rarely.

d) Alleles that prevent interbreeding are more likely to be inherited by viable, nonhybrid offspring than alleles that permit random mating.

Which observation does not provide evidence that sexual selection can be an important cause of speciation? a) In cichlid fish, the color of males acts as a reproductive barrier between species. b) Rapidly evolving surface proteins on sperm and eggs accelerate gametic isolation. c) Groups of birds with promiscuous mating systems have higher diversity than sister clades have. d) In many species, recombination rates differ for males and females. e) Female crickets respond to songs that have a pulse rate similar to that of their own species.

d) In many species, recombination rates differ for males and females.

In which situation would you expect the interacting parties not to cooperate? a) The individuals are closely related. b) The individuals have a history of repeated social interactions. c) An individual that provides assistance in the present will in turn be assisted in the future. d) Individuals are unlikely to encounter each other again in the future. e) Individuals are part of a social group in which noncooperating individuals are punished.

d) Individuals are unlikely to encounter each other again in the future.

Imagine you examine several variable loci from two populations of closely related organisms. Which statement describes a locus that would be a good candidate for a "genomic island of speciation"? a) A neutrally evolving locus that is variable in both populations b) A locus in which natural selection favors the same allele in both populations c) An allele at a locus that provides a selective advantage in one population's range, but not the other's d) Loci that differ greatly between the populations, with one allele fixed in one population and another allele nearly fixed in the other e) A locus in which the sequence is made similar by gene flow

d) Loci that differ greatly between the populations, with one allele fixed in one population and another allele nearly fixed in the other

Which idea is central to the biological species concept? a) Distinct lineages b) Sexual selection c) Divergent phenotypes d) Reproductive isolation e) Vicariance

d) Reproductive isolation

You are in an area famous for the presence for cuckoo birds, and you notice a mother bird kicking eggs out of its nest. What is the most likely explanation? a) The bird is sacrificing the eggs to distract the cuckoo birds from its other eggs. b) The mother does not want its offspring to be stolen by the cuckoo birds. c) The bird wants to have fewer offspring to reduce the effort involved with rearing them d) The bird has recognized an attempt at brood parasitism and is removing the threat. e) Too many eggs attract cuckoo birds and the mother is reducing the threat.

d) The bird has recognized an attempt at brood parasitism and is removing the threat.

The evolutionary cause of obesity as a growing epidemic in many countries is ___ a. The development of agriculture b. Our appetites, digestion, and metabolism are geared largely to the diet of our pre-agriculture ancestors c. A random mutation in a metabolic genes d. A and b

d. A and b

From the factors below, which are the selective pressures for the evolution of infectious diseases? a.Evading the host's immune system b.Transmission to other hosts before current host dies or its immune system clears the infection c.Medicine and other medical interventions d. All of the above

d. All of the above

When memes compete in the "marketplace of ideas," why might the best idea (for humans) not win out? a.Ideas that are best at motivating humans to remember and communicate them will tend to win over ideas that are best for humans b.Good ideas, when first introduced, are at low frequency in the population of memes, and so are likely to go extinct due to genetic drift c.Good ideas might be trapped in a different memepool, perhaps encoded in a different language, and never get the chance to compete in a particular marketplace of ideas (memepool). d. All of the above

d. All of the above

You collect individuals from different allopatric populations of a leaf-eating beetle. In the laboratory, you conduct mate-choice experiments to assess levels of reproductive isolation among beetles from different populations. Assuming that ecological speciation occurred in the wild, which pattern should you expect? a. No reproductive isolation b. Reproductive isolation that is independent of habitat type c. More reproductive isolation among populations that share similar habitats d. Less reproductive isolation among populations that share similar habitats e. Complete reproductive isolation among all populations

d. Less reproductive isolation among populations that share similar habitats

A monophyletic group (also called a clade) is defined as a. Having shared ancestral character states b. A branch point in a phylogenetic tree c. Having shared derived character states d. The set of species derived from one common ancestor e. Having an ancestral characteristic

d. The set of species derived from one common ancestor

The evolution of decreased virulence would be expected in a.A parasite transmitted through shaking hands b.A parasite species in which multiple infection is frequent c.A host with an effective immune system d.A parasite transmitted from caregiver to baby during the changing of diapers e.All of the above

d.A parasite transmitted from caregiver to baby during the changing of diapers

A feature that reduces the fitness of an individual but benefits the population or species a.Cannot evolve by individual selection b.Can evolve by group selection c.Will decline in frequency among other nonaltruistic phenotypes d.All of the above e.None of the above

d.All of the above

Which example meme has aligned fitness interests with its human host? a. Airbrushed pictures of your friends and acquaintances on social media looking beautiful and having fun without you b.A fake news article c.Using birth control pills d.Jazzercise (a once popular form of exercise set to music)

d.Jazzercise (a once popular form of exercise set to music)

Before endosymbiosis could occur, what must have been present? a.An atmosphere with high levels of oxygen b.Aggregated continental crust via plate tectonics c.Oceans with salinities close to the modern level d.Multiple species of prokaryotic organisms e.An ozone layer, to protect genetic material from the effects of ultraviolet radiation

d.Multiple species of prokaryotic organisms

How do evolutionary biologists view the notion of biological "progress"? a.Evolution proceeds toward a goal (teleology) b.Lasting evolutionary progress does not occur because of cyclical phenomena, such as mass extinctions c.Progress can be measured by levels of hierarchical organization among individuals of the same species. d.Objective definitions of progress are fraught with difficulty, as the processes that drive evolution have no mechanism for foresight. e.Progress can be measured by how much a given species resembles homo sapiens.

d.Objective definitions of progress are fraught with difficulty, as the processes that drive evolution have no mechanism for foresight.

Which condition would most likely lead to an increase in the frequency of an altruistic behavior in a population? a.The altruistic behavior benefits the population. b.The rate of extinction of the selfish genotype is high. c.There is a gene flow among populations d.The beneficiaries of the behavior are related to the individual performing it.

d.The beneficiaries of the behavior are related to the individual performing it.

Which infectious disease is transmitted vertically? a) Human rhinoviruses, a cold, from someone sneezing in your face b) Gonorrhea, a disease transmitted between sexual partners c) Zika, spread by mosquitoes d) Mesothelioma, lung cancer caused by asbestos e) HIV, spread from mother to child during gestation or breast feeding

e) HIV, spread from mother to child during gestation or breast feeding

Coevolution in predator-prey interactions does not lead to a) an evolutionary arms race. b) stable genetic equilibrium. c) indefinite fluctuations of genetic composition. d) extinction. e) ecological character displacement.

e) ecological character displacement.

Why do scientists reject the use of evolution and genetics to support racists' ideologies? a.The concept of race is largely useless in a biological context and is really a social myth. b.It is factually incorrect to claim that some populations are "higher," "superior," or "more evolved" than others. c.Studies of human genetics show that the majority of genetic variation is within populations, not among populations. d.Scientific racism is a pseudoscience that begins with a conclusion and misuses data to support it. e. All of the above

e. All of the above

Which data would not affect maximum likelihood estimates of phylogenies when comparing different tree hypotheses? a. The tree topology b. The lengths of the branches c. The branching order of the tree d. Nucleotide substitution rate e. All of these are important for finding the most likely tree

e. All of these are important for finding the most likely tree

2. The structure and morphology of the genitalia of many insects sits in the gray area between pre- and post-mating isolation. The analogy most similar to the functional use of genital structures in these insects is a _____________________. a. Ratchet that moves one direction b. Bottlebrush similar to lab cleaning supplies c. Traffic light that can show red, yellow, or green d. Rasp with a roughened surface for scraping e. Lock and key, where correct fit between component is critical

e. Lock and key, where correct fit between component is critical

What class of barrier to gene flow would we be observing if we noted that the offspring of a lion and a tiger (two different species) are awkward, gangly beasts that have poor survival in the wild? a. Premating barrier b. Geographic isolation c. Prezygotic barrier d. Temporal isolation e. Postzygotic barrier

e. Postzygotic barrier