Evolution Study Guide

Variation is the result of

-An organism consciously adapting to the environment -Randomly occurring mutations

Which of the following could cause the extinction of a species?

-Environmental changes -Loss of food source -Disease

Which of the following statements is TRUE?

-Extinct organisms may be related to living organisms -Extinct organisms may be related to other organisms

Pelican P is born with a larger bill than other pelicans of the same species. When Pelican P breeds, some of its offspring also have larger bills. Pelican P's large bill is most likely a result of:

A mutation

Based on these footprints, you decide that the organism started to run. Your idea is known as:

An inference

Ancestors of modern elephants had much shorted trunks than elephants do today. Explain how each of the following was important for evolution of the longer-trunked modern elephant from its shorter-trunked ancestor. -Heredity

As the ancestors keep passing genes, the short trunked elephants will start to get long trunks.

Ancestors of modern elephants had much shorted trunks than elephants do today. Explain how each of the following was important for evolution of the longer-trunked modern elephant from its shorter-trunked ancestor. -Natural Selection

As the elephants have offspring, the longer-trunked elephants adapt better allowing more reproducing.

According to geological evidence, the earth is:

Billions of years old

A man lifts weights and exercises until he is very muscular. He works out with the hope that his children will also be very strong. -A problem with this idea is:

Characteristics that are acquired during one's lifetime cannot be passed to offspring

To determine the time span during which this species of fish lived you should

Compare this column to columns from other locations

The order of these organisms, from oldest to youngest is most likely:

Corals, shells, insects

A scientist goes to an undisturbed field and begins digging. She finds a leg bone of Dinosaur A about 12 feet below the surface. She keeps digging and then finds a jaw bone of Dinosaur B about 27 feet below the surface. Which is most likely?

Dinosaur B lived before dinosaur A

Over long periods of time, some species have become extinct, while new species have descended from earlier species. These changes are known as:

Evolution

Charles Darwin developed his theories based on his work with:

Finches of the Galapagos islands

Which of the following trait provides genetic variation within a flower population?

Flowers that have twice the normal number of petals

A paleontologist is most likely to study:

Fossils

Which of the following statements explains genetic variation?

Genetic mutations occur during the process of reproduction

For many generations, a fish population had a lot of color variation. About half of the fish population was white and the other half gray. A species of large fish that eats the smaller fish enters the area. This larger fish can see white fish easier than gray fish. -What is likely to happened to the size of the fish population? Explain.

Gray is camouflage so it will increase, while white will decrease. So the size will stay the same.

Based on evidence in the diagram above, the organism that lives most recently:

Has a shell

A man lifts weights and exercises until he is very muscular. He works out with the hope that his children will also be very strong. -To insure that his children are strong, which of the following should the man do?

Help his children exercise to build muscles.

Which of the following could describe a mutation in the population?

Hornless cows have horned offspring

Which of the following statements is FALSE?

Humans have had no effect on the evolution of organisms

Which of the following lists the organisms from youngest to oldest?

Mammals, fish, bacteria

A population of birds eats the green moths that live in a pine forest. Every so often, the green moths have a brown offspring. The brown moths usually are seen quickly by the birds and eaten sooner. -The fact that the brown moths are easier to see and are less likely to survive as a result is known as:

Natural selection

The ability of populations of bacteria to develop resistance to antibiotics is an example of which of the following?

Natural selection

Which of the following is FALSE?

Organisms have evolved only over the last few hundred years

Which of the following organisms have existed for the longest period of time?

Single-celled organisms

Ancestors of modern elephants had much shorted trunks than elephants do today. Explain how each of the following was important for evolution of the longer-trunked modern elephant from its shorter-trunked ancestor. -Variation

Some elephants have long trunks while others have short trunks.

Mutations are:

Sometimes helpful, sometimes harmful, sometimes neither

Geologic time periods are divided by:

The appearance and disappearance of life forms

What kind of information and you collect from these footprints?

The approximate shape of the organism's feet

A population of birds eats the green moths that live in a pine forest. Every so often, the green moths have a brown offspring. The brown moths usually are seen quickly by the birds and eaten sooner. -Imagine that increases pollution caused the pine trees in the forest to be heavily covered with brown particles. What is most likely to happen?

The brown moth would be less likely to be eaten by the birds. Over time, the moth population would have more brown moths.

A population of birds eats the green moths that live in a pine forest. Every so often, the green moths have a brown offspring. The brown moths usually are seen quickly by the birds and eaten sooner. -Which of the following statements is TRUE?

The brown moths are possibly a result of a mutation The brown moths increase the variation within the moth population

For many generations, a fish population had a lot of color variation. About half of the fish population was white and the other half gray. A species of large fish that eats the smaller fish enters the area. This larger fish can see white fish easier than gray fish. -What is likely to happen to the color of the fish population? Explain.

The color of the gray fish will increase because the white fish are getting eaten.

A female giraffe with a short neck is have a difficult time reaching the leaves on the taller trees. According to the theory of natural selection, which of the following is possible?

The giraffe survives on leaves from shorter trees. Her offspring with longer necks are more likely to survive.

Which of the following statements is true?

The more similar the DNA, the more closely related the organisms

Which of the following statements is an observation based on the image above?

The organism had 3 toes

A population of birds eats the green moths that live in a pine forest. Every so often, the green moths have a brown offspring. The brown moths usually are seen quickly by the birds and eaten sooner. -The green moths survive in the forest because:

Their coloring makes them better adapted than brown moths.

Ancestors of modern elephants had much shorted trunks than elephants do today. Explain how each of the following was important for evolution of the longer-trunked modern elephant from its shorter-trunked ancestor. -Mutation

This could have caused a long trunk, and it could have been passed down through the generations.

The diagram above shows:

-A series of rock layers -The presence of fossils

Which of the following is NOT likely to be a fossil?

Cement

Humans currently live in which geological time period?

Cenozoic

Which of the following is NOT used to determine how a species is classified?

Environment

"Diversity of species" refers to the idea that

There are many different kinds of organisms

Which of the following provided the LEAST evidence for the theory of evolution?

Weather