Biology chapter 11 quiz

The evidence that one species of finch migrated to a Galàpagos island, and evolved into two species now found on the same island, feeding on different food sources, is an example of ____ speciation.

sympatric

A flowering vine plant, Gelsemium spp., includes two separate species that formerly occupied a large, common habitat area, and currently occupy overlapping areas in the southeastern United States. Gelsemium sempervirens and Gelsemium rankinii have reproductive isolation, which has allowed them to exist as separate species due to

sympatric speciation

Which of the following events is likely to precede adaptive radiation?

the ability to lay water-retaining eggs on land evolves

Which of these is not a vestigial structure?

the canine teeth of a housecat

In terms of evolution, the "fittest" individuals are:

the ones with the most offspring that then have the most offspring.

Mass extinctions are periods during which a large number of species on earth become extinct over a short period of time. Which of the following typically follows mass extinctions?

unusually rapid adaptive radiation and diversification of species

The last common ancestor for humans and monkeys:

was neither a human nor a monkey

________________ is defined as a rapid diversification event that occurs when, in a brief period of time, a small number of species diversify into a much larger number of species that are able to live in a wide diversity of habitats.

Adaptive Radiation

Australia is a largely isolated habitat filled with unique organisms. Given the fact that placental mammals are not commonly found in Australia, which of the following would best explain this phenomenon?

Biogeography best explains this phenomenon since Australia is a large, isolated habitat with a unique biogeographic pattern.

Which statement best explains the difference between homologous and analogous structures and traits?

Examples of homologous structures would be a human arm and a bat wing, whereas examples of analogous structures would be a flying mammal and a flying insect.

The fact that fish, penguins, and dolphins all have the same basic shape is best explained by which of the following?

Fish, penguins, and dolphins all faced the same physical constraints during their evolution and converged upon the same body plan.

Which statement most accurately describes what we know about the rate of evolutionary change?

For a given organism, the pace of evolution depends on the selective forces acting on the population.

Which statement describes a limitation of using the fossil record to study evolution?

Fossils only form under a very specific and rare set of environmental conditions.

Which statement is an example of evolution by natural selection that has taken place over the last few decades in a manner that has allowed scientists to observe the evolutionary process?

Many strains of the bacterium Staphylococcus aureus have become resistant to penicillin.

Which statement describes the concept of convergent evolution?

Organisms that are not directly related develop similar traits.

Which of the following is a correct statement about sympatric or allopatric speciation?

Polyploidy is a type of sympatric speciation.

Sympatric speciation is:

Speciation from a single ancestor in the same geographic region.

Which statement is true about extinction?

There are many causes of extinctions and an animal or plant may go extinct for any of a combination of these factors.

Which statement about vestigial structures is false?

Vestigial structures arise through convergent evolution.

The honeycreepers are a group of Hawaiian birds with many different species that all evolved from a single species that migrated from the Americas. Which pattern of evolution does the speciation of the honeycreepers most likely exemplify?

adaptive radiation

In the Grand Canyon, in the southwestern U.S., there are many species of squirrels, including the Albert Squirrel and a "subspecies," the Kaibab Squirrel (isolation is not complete, according to the biological species definition by Ernst Mayr). The two populations of squirrels can interbreed to produce fertile offspring, but the populations exist on different portions of the rim of the Grand Canyon, separated by the canyon and the Colorado River. This is an example of

allopatric speciation

The method of speciation that has led to the production of wheat, bananas, potatoes, and coffee is called:

allopolyploidy.

A fossil is defined most broadly as:

any preserved remnant or trace of an organism from the past.

The study of the distribution patterns of living organisms around the world is called:

biogeography

The pace of evolution:

can be rapid or slow.

Fossils:

can show evidence of evolutionary change by revealing what organisms looked like a long time ago.

A group of birds fly off the mainland and end up on a distant set of islands. Once there, they find a large number of opportunities for diversification and adaptation. This situation is best described as which of the following?

colonization event

The __________________________ propelled the flowering plants to an explosive adaptive radiation.

evolutionary innovation of the flower

Mass extinctions occur mostly because of:

extraordinary and sudden changes to the environment.

"Scientists can never observe evolution in action." This statement is:

false. Multiple replicated, controlled laboratory experiments and long-term studies of natural populations have enabled scientists to observe and measure evolution as it occurs.

Which statement about natural selection is true?

favors individuals that reproduce more than others.

The idea that evolutionary change is slow and continuous is best described as

gradual change

Scientists have a very complete fossil record showing the evolution of horses over millions of years, with the legs becoming longer and the teeth larger, as ancestors of the modern horse adapted from living in forest to grasslands. This is an example of

gradualism

The current mass extinction is believed to be primarily caused by?

human actions

Radiometric data is useful in conjunction with the study of the fossil record because:

it allows a determination not only of the relative ages of different fossils, but their absolute ages as well.

Punctuated equilibrium is a model of evolution in which:

long periods of relatively little evolutionary change are interrupted by bursts of rapid change.

Radiometric Dating:

makes it possible to determine the absolute age of fossils.

The three phenomena that tend to trigger adaptive radiations are:

mass extinctions, colonization events, and evolutionary innovations.

Which of the following is incorrectly matched?

molecular biology: examination of life at the level of atoms and compounds

In examples of convergent evolution, it can be demonstrated that the organisms of the two groups that converged:

occupy similar environments

Natural selection

organisms best adapted to their environment survive & reproduce to pass on favorable traits to their offspring.

Applying what you know about punctuated equilibrium versus gradualism, which method of speciation is most likely to lead to punctuated equilibrium?

polyploidy

The idea that evolution proceeds with long periods of stasis with relatively brief bursts of fast evolutionary change is?

punctuated equilibrium

Anatomical homology in vertebrate forelimbs is considered to be evidence for evolution because

similarities among vertebrate forelimbs suggest that they evolved from a common ancestor.

Anatomical homology in vertebrate forelimbs is considered to be evidence for evolution because:

similarities among vertebrate forelimbs suggest that they evolved from a common ancestor.