Question 1

When Sandra Anderson and her colleagues studied fruit set of Rhabdothamnus solandri on the mainland and on the island, why was it important to measure fruit set when flowers were hand pollinated?

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Question 2

Please describe three pieces of evidence that suggest that mitochondria are derived from free-living bacteria.

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Question 3

Which is NOT true of positive frequency-dependent selection?

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Question 4

Scott Carroll found that soapberry bug populations in Northern Australia had longer beaks than those in eastern Australia, even though both populations lived on the invasive balloon vine. What is an explanation for these differences?

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Question 5

Why might we expect vertically transmitted endosymbionts to have smaller genomes than their free-living relatives?

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Question 6

Imagine that parasite pressure is similarly high across Drosophila melanogaster's range, but different geographic areas differ in the amount of food typically available (high food versus low food). In what regions is higher resistance to parasitism likely, and why?

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Question 7

Which of the following is true regarding the evolution of photosynthetic organisms?

Accepted Answer

All of the statements are true regarding the evolution of photosynthetic organisms. A) describes primary endosymbiosis leading to green algae, B) involves secondary endosymbiosis for protozoans, and C) outlines the evolution of land plants from green algae.

Question 8

How might the mutualism between ants and flowering plants boost the diversity of plants?

Accepted Answer

Ants benefit from fleshy elaiosomes on seeds, and the plant seed is protected from herbivores after being discarded in an ant nest.

Question 9

Please explain why most scientists now accept the idea that the most recent common ancestor of eukaryotes likely possessed mitochondria.

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Question 10

Describe how parasites may exert negative frequency-dependent selection on their hosts.

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Question 11

What have scientists discovered about the aster leafhopper endosymbionts, Nasuia and Sulcia?

Accepted Answer

Nasuia and Sulcia are endosymbionts of the aster leafhopper that have evolved to produce essential amino acids not found in the sap of their host plant, which are crucial for the leafhopper's diet. Additionally, these bacteria have undergone significant genomic reduction, losing many genes necessary for survival outside of their symbiotic relationship with the leafhopper, making them highly specialized and dependent on their host.

Question 12

Considering potential trade-offs between replication within hosts and transmission between hosts, would you expect parasites/pathogens to evolve to be more virulent if they are transmitted vertically (parent to offspring through reproduction) or horizontally (individual to individual)? Explain.

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Question 13

Explain how endogenous retroviruses and mobile genetic elements have coevolved with their host genomes.

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Question 14

Are mobile genetic elements always parasitic?

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...

Question 15

Which of the following best explains why rabbit myxoma virus in Australia became less virulent over time?

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Question 16

Describe how Heather Henter was able to show that parasitism success in wasps was a heritable trait that varied in the population.

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Question 17

You are studying virulence evolution in a virus that infects two different populations of elephants. One of the elephant populations is characterized by large population size and high density, while the other is smaller and much less dense. How might these differences influence the evolution of virulence in the pathogen?

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Question 18

The stability of mutualisms is sometimes described as being "on a knife edge," with the possibility of shifting to an antagonistic, rather than a mutually beneficial, interaction. Using yucca moths as an example, explain why this is the case.

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Question 19

Why might higher tolerance for TTX be more advantageous for garter snakes in some environments than in others?

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Quiz 15: Intimate Partnerships: How Species Adapt to Each Other