Deck 16: Evolution on a Large Scale

Question 1

Which of the following correctly reflects the division of the history of life on Earth, from most inclusive to least inclusive?

A) era - period - epoch
B) epoch - period - era
C) era - epoch - period
D) epoch - era - period
E) period - epoch - era

Answer 1

A

Question 2

Members of two different species are never capable of mating.

Answer 2

False

Question 3

Most dinosaurs became extinct at the end of which of the following periods of the Mesozoic?

A) Jurassic
B) Cretaceous
C) Devonian
D) Triassic
E) Permian

Answer 3

B

Question 4

Convergent evolution gives rise to analogous structures in unrelated taxa.

Question 5

Which of the three domains contain(s) prokaryotic organisms?

A) Bacteria
B) Archaea
C) Eukarya
D) Bacteria and Archaea
E) Bacteria, Archaea, and Eukarya

Question 6

Shared derived traits are found in all members of the ingroup of a clade.

Question 7

The ribosomal RNA (rRNA) genes of different organisms are often compared as a means to classify them because rRNA genes evolve much more slowly than other genes.

Question 8

Two species are said to be closely related if they

A) possess a common ancestor.
B) can interbreed but not produce fertile offspring.
C) are reproductively isolated from each other.
D) have a shared gene pool.
E) can interbreed and produce fertile offspring.

Question 9

A zygote fails to undergo mitosis because of a mismatch in the number of chromosomes. This is an example of

A) hybrid sterility.
B) zygote mortality.
C) prezygotic isolation.
D) temporal isolation.
E) allopatric speciation.

Question 10

Two organisms present in the same genus are usually more closely related to each other than to organisms in other genera.

Question 11

The pollen, or sperm, from a red maple tree is unable to fertilize the eggs from a sugar maple tree. This is an example of what type of isolating mechanism?

A) mechanical isolation
B) habitat isolation
C) temporal isolation
D) hybrid sterility
E) gamete isolation

Question 12

The gradualistic model of speciation is supported by many transitional forms.

Question 13

Allopatric speciation is compatible with both the gradualistic and punctuated equilibrium models of evolution.

Question 14

Which of the following is a postzygotic isolating mechanism for two species found in the same geographical location?

A) The two species occupy different habitats.
B) The two species are active during different parts of the day.
C) The two species mate during different times of the year.
D) The two species have incompatible genitalia.
E) The two species can mate, but the offspring are sterile.

Question 15

A reproductive barrier that prevents interbreeding because the two species mate during different times of the year is called

A) hybrid sterility isolation.
B) gamete isolation.
C) F ₂ fitness isolation.
D) temporal isolation.
E) behavioral isolation.

Question 16

Cladograms show the sequence of evolution of the characters in a clade.

Question 17

Elaborate courtship behavior in animals, such as with the blue-footed boobies of the Galápagos Islands, is an example of which of the following reproductive barriers?

A) behavioral isolation
B) mechanical isolation
C) temporal isolation
D) postzygotic isolation
E) hybrid sterility

Question 18

Use of chemical signals in mate recognition is a type of postzygotic isolating mechanism.

Question 19

In the three-domain system of classification

A) eukaryotes are more similar to the prokaryotes now classified in domain Bacteria than to those now classified in domain Archaea.
B) animals and plants are less similar to each other than to the prokaryotes now classified in domain Archaea.
C) prokaryotes are classified into two domains, with the organisms in domain Archaea more similar to eukaryotes than to the prokaryotes in domain Bacteria.
D) cladistics alone are used to formulate the new phylogenetic tree of life.
E) by the principle of parsimony, it requires fewer assumptions to divide the prokaryotes into two domains than it does to put them in a single domain.

Question 20

Geographic isolation is not a factor in sympatric speciation.

Question 21

Shared derived traits

A) are shared only by common ancestors.
B) are shared by all organisms on the cladogram.
C) are found within members of the outgroup.
D) are homologies found only in certain members of the ingroup.
E) are homologies found between the ingroup and the outgroup.

Question 22

Which of the following is an example of sympatric speciation?

A) two populations of salamanders that live on isolated islands and eventually become separate species, unable to interbreed
B) different breeds of dogs that live in different areas of the world but are able to produce fertile offspring
C) a horse and a donkey that may interbreed to produce a mule that is sterile and unable to reproduce
D) two related plant species living in the same area that hybridize, then undergo chromosome doubling, which results in the creation of a third species of plant that is unable to reproduce with either of the two original species
E) three species that evolve from a common ancestral species due to reproductive isolation and adaptation to different habitats

Question 23

Significant mass extinctions occurred during which of the following peroids?

A) Pleistocene, Ordovician, and Triassic
B) Ordovician, Triassic, and Jurassic
C) Triassic, Permian, and Cretaceous
D) Triassic, Permian, Cretaceous, Pleistocene, Ordovician, and Devonian
E) Ordovician, Triassic, Jurassic, Silurian, Eocene, and Oligocene

Question 24

A clade includes which of the following?

A) an outgroup and an ingroup
B) a common ancestor and all its descendant species
C) one taxon with shared derived characters
D) an ancestor and all its descendant species, and taxa with shared derived characters
E) an ingroup only

Question 25

A shared ancestral characteristic used in cladistics is found

A) only in the two most recent ancestors.
B) only among the members of the ingroup.
C) in both the outgroup and the ingroup.
D) in two of the outgroups.
E) only in the most distant ancestor.

Question 26

Which of the following correctly shows a possible order of events resulting in allopatric speciation?

A) postzygotic reproductive isolation - geographic isolation - natural selection
B) geographic isolation - prezygotic reproductive isolation - genetic drift
C) geographic isolation - natural selection - prezygotic reproductive isolation
D) natural selection - postzygotic reproductive isolation - geographic isolation
E) natural selection - prezygotic reproductive isolation - postzygotic reproductive isolation

Question 27

Which of the following is thought to have contributed to the many mass extinction events that have occurred throughout Earth's history?

A) plate tectonics
B) habitat loss
C) meteorite impacts
D) continental drift
E) All of the above describe factors that have contributed to mass extinctions events.

Question 28

Homologous structures

A) have identical functions.
B) have fully divergent functions.
C) are also called analogous structures.
D) are only shared by organisms of the same genus.
E) are often shared by organisms in the same line of descent.

Question 29

The punctuated equilibrium model of evolution suggests that new species appear

A) gradually; as groups become isolated, they slowly evolve through their own individual pathways.
B) only after older species disappear from the fossil record.
C) suddenly after long periods of time with little to no change.
D) gradually after long periods of time with little to no change; as groups become isolated, they slowly evolve through their own individual pathways.
E) gradually over very short periods of time so that intermediate species are often observed in the fossil record.

Question 30

A phylogenetic tree

A) indicates common ancestors.
B) is based entirely on DNA evidence.
C) uses analagous characteristics to determine relationships.
D) indicates the geologic time scale for the evolution of a particular species.
E) are no longer used in science.

Question 31

Pinus strobus is the scientific name for the white pine. Pinus is the

A) specific epithet.
B) genus.
C) binomial name.
D) family name.
E) order name.

Question 32

Which of the following is inconsistent with the punctuated equilibrium model?

A) There is a period of no change interrupted by speciation.
B) Transitional fossils are less likely to be found.
C) It is difficult to determine when speciation occurred.
D) It often involves an isolated subpopulation.
E) Speciation often occurs rapidly.

Question 33

A major difference between allopatric and sympatric speciation is whether

A) the resulting species are reproductively isolated or not.
B) gene flow continues to occur or not.
C) two or three species result.
D) geographic isolation is required or not.
E) the new species are separated by a prezygotic or postzygotic isolating mechanism.

Question 34

Which of the following lists the levels of taxonomic classification in order from the most inclusive to the least inclusive?

A) genus - family - order - class - phylum
B) phylum - order - class - family - species
C) genus - order - family - class - phylum
D) family - order - class - phylum - kingdom
E) domain - kingdom - phylum - class - order

Question 35

Sympatric speciation occurs more commonly in which types of organisms?

A) plants
B) humans
C) birds
D) fish
E) insects

Question 36

The fossils of a new species of reptile are found in deposits dating to the Permian period. Later, scientists discover that fossils of the reptile species changed somewhat over time and can be found in deposits dating from the Permian period all the way up to the Cretaceous period. The scientists' observations most strongly support which evolutionary model(s)?

A) allopatric speciation
B) punctuated evolution
C) adaptive radiation
D) both allopatric speciation and adaptive radiation
E) gradualistic evolution

Question 37

The finches of the Galápagos islands evolved as a result of what type(s) of speciation?

A) allopatric speciation
B) adaptive radiation
C) sympatric speciation
D) both allopatric speciation and adaptive radiation
E) both sympatric speciation and adaptive radiation

Question 38

Similarity due to convergent evolution is called

A) analogy.
B) homology.
C) taxonomy.
D) phylogeny.
E) cladistics.

Question 39

Which of the following would be considered analogous structures?

A) the forelimb of a bat and the forelimb of a horse
B) the wings of a fly and the wings of a sparrow
C) the pelvis of a human and the pelvis of a whale
D) the flipper of a dolphin and the arm of a human
E) the wings of a bird and the forelimbs of a reptile

Question 40

Evolutionary relationships between organisms are determined by

A) molecular evidence and anatomical homologies.
B) molecular evidence, anatomical homologies, and fossil records.
C) molecular evidence, anatomical analogies, and fossil records.
D) molecular evidence and fossil records.
E) molecular evidence, anatomical homologies, anatomical analogies, and fossil records.

Question 41

Which geological timescale contains the greatest number of years?

A) eras
B) periods
C) epochs
D) centuries
E) decades

Question 42

Which event is specific to the Cretaceous mass extinction?

A) dramatic environmental change
B) shifting wind patterns
C) shifting ocean currents
D) a decrease in the amount of shallow marine habitat
E) a large meteor impact

Question 43

Which of the following statements is true about the shown cladogram and the characters used to derive it?

A) Three-chambered heart is the most inclusive character on the cladogram.
B) The snake and lizard share a common ancestor that does not have the characters internal fertilization or amniotic membrane in egg.
C) The character notochord in embryo is not shared by the common ancestor to all of the organisms on the cladogram.
D) The two organisms furthest from each other on the cladogram share only two common characters.
E) The character long cylindrical body is useful in placing the snake and eel into the cladogram.

Question 44

The term parsimony implies that

A) the three-domain system is superior to the five-kingdom system of classification.
B) molecular data are more accurate in implying evolutionary relationships than homology.
C) the fewer assumptions that are made, the more probable the conclusion.
D) smaller clades are more accurate than larger clades.
E) shared derived traits shared by fewer organisms are more correct than those shared by more organisms.