Deck 16: Evidence for Evolution a Fish With Fingers

Question 1

Which would most likely become fossilized under the appropriate conditions?

A) squid
B) shrimp
C) snail
D) seastar
E) sponge

Answer 1

snail

Question 2

Which would least likely become fossilized?

A) a fly caught in amber
B) a plant leaf in sedimentary rock
C) a vertebrate buried by volcanic ash
D) a invertebrate on the sea floor
E) a snail caught in a mudslide

Answer 2

a invertebrate on the sea floor

Question 3

Explain how scientists can find tropical aquatic fossils in the rock of the arctic tundra or fossilized aquatic organisms in the rocks of a mountain.

Answer 3

The planet has undergone many changes and continues to change.What is part of a mountain today may have been part of a seabed at some point in the past.

Question 4

Regardless of the specifics,fossils may only form if the organism is preserved quickly.Why?

Question 5

What inhibits fossilization of a dead organism?

A) lack of oxygen
B) having a silicon protective shell
C) having a calcified skeleton
D) mineralization
E) the presence of microbes

Question 6

What is mineralization?

Question 7

What circumstances would keep an animal from becoming a fossil?

Question 8

A paleontologist studies

A) sedimentary rocks.
B) invertebrates.
C) relative dating.
D) radiocarbon dating.
E) fossils.

Question 9

Explain why some parts of the planet are rich in fossils,and in other places,there are no,or few,fossils.

Question 10

How is a fossil mold formed?

Question 11

All of the following provide conditions in which a fossil may form,EXCEPT

A) desiccation.
B) slow freezing.
C) burial in tree sap.
D) burial in a volcanic eruption.
E) burial in a mudslide.

Question 12

Which of the following correctly describes a type of fossil and the way in which it is formed?

A) A spider imprint can be created when the spider is trapped in amber.
B) A fish fossil can be created when the fish is rapidly buried in sediment, then dessicated.
C) A dinosaur may leave a mineralized fossil if it is rapidly buried in sediment and slowly compressed over millions of years.
D) A plant fossil may take the form of a leaf imprint, created when the leaf was rapidly buried in soft mud, which hardened around it.
E) Rapid freezing or desiccation may leave a fossil imprint if the organism is rapidly buried in sediment.

Question 13

Mineralization is the

A) replacement of organs with tree sap.
B) replacement of the skin with hard minerals.
C) replacement of the bones and teeth with minerals.
D) process of making all fossils.
E) process of making gemstones.

Question 14

Is the fossil record complete? Explain.

Question 15

Animal fossils usually have these structures.

A) legs
B) bony skeletons or hard shells
C) tails
D) scales
E) teeth

Question 16

List at least three conditions that might occur immediately upon the death of an organism that could lead to fossil formation.

Question 17

Fossils found in sedimentary rocks

A) are youngest at the bottom.
B) get older at the top.
C) get younger the deeper they are found.
D) get older the deeper they are found.
E) are all the same age.

Question 18

Why is Tiktaalik considered a transitional fossil?

A) It is now extinct.
B) It was found between land and water.
C) It is a mixture of an aquatic and terrestrial invertebrate.
D) It is a hybrid of an aquatic and terrestrial vertebrate.
E) It has two eyes and fins.

Question 19

Which of the following is TRUE of fossil formation?

A) Fossils may only form when an animal is buried in sediment.
B) Fossils may only form when an animal dries out.
C) Fossils may only form if the organism is preserved quickly.
D) Fossils may only form if the hard parts of the body mineralize.
E) Fossils may only form if soft tissue remains intact.

Question 20

Relative dating uses

A) indirect dating of fossils based on their surroundings.
B)( ¹⁴C data of the surrounding.)
C) radiometric data.
D) (¹⁴C data of the object being examined.)
E) ages of known fossils.

Question 21

You have found a new type of fossil,but you have had no success in dating the fossil or the layer of rock in which it was found.How can you estimate the fossil's age?

Question 22

The four-toed ancestor of the modern horse would have been well suited to life in the

A) open grasslands.
B) desert.
C) savannah.
D) forest.
E) tropics.

Question 23

If a fossil is found beneath of two layers of rock with relative dates of 570 mya and 530 mya,what is its approximate age?

A) 560 mya.
B) 530 mya.
C) 570 mya.
D) 550 mya.
E) 540 mya.

Question 24

If a fossil is found on top of two layers of rock with relative dates of 570 mya and 530 mya,what is its approximate age?

A) 570 mya.
B) 530 mya.
C) 560 mya.
D) 550 mya.
E) 540 mya

Question 25

All of the following statements about fossil dating are true EXCEPT

A) radiometric dating is the most accurate way to age a fossil.
B) relative dating of fossils involves radiometrically dating rocks above and below the fossil.
C) fossils found deeper in the Earth are generally older than fossils found higher.
D) both relative and radiometric dating may be used in combination to determine the age of a fossil.
E) sedimentary rock can be radiometrically dated while volcanic rock cannot

Question 26

Put the following in order,based on the fossil record and our understanding of evolution: birds,prokaryotes,reptiles,amphibians,fish,colonial protists,single-celled protists.

Question 27

You are a scientist who has just found a fossil embedded in rock that you cannot date with radiometric techniques.Is there anything else you can do to get an age for this fossil? If so,explain.Is radiometric dating completely useless to you?

Question 28

Every night when you put on your pajamas,you put that day's pants in the laundry basket first,then that day's shirt.You wash all your laundry on Sunday.After undressing on Friday,you realize you left your driver's license in your pants pocket on Wednesday.If each shirt is one layer and each pair of pants is also one layer,how many layers do you have to remove from the laundry basket to find Wednesday's pants?

A) Remove 2 layers, and the pants are layer 3.
B) Remove 3 layers, and the pants are layer 4.
C) Remove 4 layers, and the pants are layer 5.
D) Remove 5 layers, and the pants are layer 6.
E) Remove 6 layers, and the pants are layer 7.

Question 29

You find a fossil embedded in rock as shown in the picture below.What do you estimate is the age of this fossil?

Question 30

The oldest ancestor of modern day horses had how many toes?

A) 5
B) 4
C) 3
D) 2
E) 1

Question 31

Rocks formed from _____ can be directly dated using radiometric dating.

A) sedimentation
B) ossification
C) volcanic eruptions
D) mineral deposition
E) microbial activity

Question 32

What gives the most accurate dating of a fossil,relative dating or radiometric dating? Explain your answer.

Question 33

Which of these is in the correct order based on the fossil record and our understanding of evolution?

A) Birds, prokaryotes, reptiles, amphibians, fish, colonial protists, single-celled protists.
B) Prokaryotes, single-celled protists, colonial protists, fish, amphibians, reptiles, birds
C) Single-celled protists, colonial protists, prokaryotes, reptiles, amphibians, fish, birds.
D) Prokaryotes, single-celled protists, colonial protists, fish, amphibians, birds, reptiles.
E) Prokaryotes, single-celled protists, colonial protists, amphibians, fish, birds, reptiles.

Question 34

You find a fossil embedded in rock as shown in the picture below.What do you estimate is the age of this fossil?

Question 35

Use the lettered phrases below to correctly compare and contrast relative and radiometric dating by selecting the answer choice that correctly identifies the characteristics of each.
I.Can be used to arrange fossils in the correct sequence from oldest to youngest.
II.Can provide an estimate of the absolute age of the fossils.
III.Can be used on all fossils,regardless of the type of rock in which they are found.

A) Only I applies to relative dating; only II and III apply to radiometric dating.
B) Only I and III apply to relative dating; only II and III apply to radiometric dating.
C) Only I and III apply to relative dating; only I and II apply to radiometric dating.
D) Only I applies to relative dating; only II applies to radiometric dating.
E) All three characteristics apply to both relative and radiometric dating.

Question 36

Which data would be most reliable?

A) Relative dating of a fossil.
B) Radiometric dating of a fossil.
C) Relative and radiometric dating of a fossil.
D) Radiometric data of three fossils from the same depth.
E) Relative data of three fossils from different depths.

Question 37

The driving force behind the evolution of horses is

A) diet.
B) climate.
C) floods.
D) catastrophes.
E) natural selection.

Question 38

Evolutionarily speaking,which in each of the following pairs came first?

A) eukaryotes or prokaryotes
B) aquatic animals or terrestrial animals
C) multicellular organisms or cellular organisms
D) amphibians or fish
E) reptiles or birds

Question 39

Fossils found deep in the earth are generally ______ than the fossils found above them.

Question 40

Changes in species over time are well documented by ______ fossils.

A) cat
B) fish
C) horse
D) dog
E) chimpanzee

Question 41

You have four similar,apparently related fossils.The fossils are in labeled boxes,but there is a chance that another researcher working on your project mislabeled the boxes containing the specimens.You know the fossils were found at the following depths: 100 feet,80 feet,60 feet,and 35 feet.
1.Fossil 1 is similar to a lobe-finned fish,with a neck,flexible wrists,finger bones,and thick ribs.
2.Fossil 2 is similar to a lobe-finned fish,with a neck and flexible wrists.
3.Fossil 3 is similar to a lobe-finned fish,with a neck.
4.Fossil 4 is appears to be an amphibian lacking scales,with a neck,flexible wrists,finger bones,and thick ribs.
Put these fossils in order based on depth,from deepest to most shallow.

Question 42

Modern day horses have

A) five toes.
B) one toe.
C) four toes.
D) two toes.
E) three toes.

Question 43

List three challenges of living on land as compared with living in the water?

Question 44

The most ancient horses had

A) five toes.
B) one toe.
C) four toes.
D) two toes.
E) three toes.

Question 45

Which statement about Tiktaalik is FALSE?

A) It was a tetrapod.
B) It is a transitional fossil.
C) It did not have jointed fingers.
D) It was a fish with useful terrestrial adaptations.
E) Its neck was mobile.

Question 46

All of the following are features of a tetrapod,EXCEPT

A) two true limbs.
B) limbs made of bone.
C) limbs with jointed wrists.
D) limbs with jointed ankles.
E) limbs with digits.

Question 47

All of the following are TRUE about the evolution of the horse,EXCEPT

A) the earliest horselike ancestors appeared 2 million years ago.
B) horses evolved from ancestors that had four toes.
C) modern horses walk on the central toe.
D) the fossil record of the horse is fairly well studied.
E) some ancestral species evolved into two different species, one of which became an ancestor of the horse while the other became extinct.

Question 48

The discovery of a transitional fossil is important because

A) it supports geologic timescale.
B) it supports relative dating.
C) it supports evolution and natural selection.
D) it supports relative and radiometric dating.
E) it supports paleontology.

Question 49

Which of the following statements is TRUE?

A) Prokaryotes and eukaryotes evolved at the same time.
B) Tiktaalik is a species that is intermediate between a fish and a reptile.
C) Evolution has been only poorly supported by the fossil record.
D) Animals with hard parts such as bones or shells are more likely to fossilize.
E) Thanks to extensive excavations, the fossil record is now nearly complete.

Question 50

What are the two conclusions about life on Earth that are derived from the theory of descent with modification?

Question 51

The fossil record could be improved with more of these.

A) whole animal fossils
B) transitional fossils
C) mold fossils
D) mineralized fossils
E) trace fossils

Question 52

List at least two ways in which Tiktaalik is like a fish and two ways in which it is like a tetrapod.

Question 53

What were the two predictions of Darwin's theory of evolution? Has the fossil record supported those predictions? Explain your answer.

Question 54

Which of the following statements is FALSE?

A) The greatest evidence in support of the theory of evolution comes from fossils.
B) The fossil record is incomplete, even for vertebrates.
C) The fossil record provides great detail about the ancestors of animals such as jellyfish.
D) The fossil record shows that prokaryotes evolved before eukaryotes.
E) The fossil record contains intermediate organisms that have some ancestral traits as well as newer, more evolved traits.

Question 55

You have four similar,apparently related fossils.
1.Fossil 1 is similar to a lobe-finned fish,with a neck,flexible wrists,finger bones,and thick ribs.
2.Fossil 2 is similar to a lobe-finned fish,with a neck and flexible wrists.
3.Fossil 3 is similar to a lobe-finned fish,with a neck.
4.Fossil 4 is appears to be an amphibian lacking scales,with a neck,flexible wrists,finger bones,and thick ribs.
Which one of these would be considered a tetrapod?

Question 56

A tetrapod is

A) an animal with two fins.
B) an animal with four fins.
C) an animal with two limbs.
D) an animal with four limbs.
E) an animal with four appendages intermediate between fins and limbs.

Question 57

All of the following are tetrapods,EXCEPT

A) ray-finned fishes.
B) amphibians.
C) reptiles.
D) birds.
E) mammals.

Question 58

Velociraptor,of Jurassic Park fame,was one of many genera in the group of animals called dromeosaurs.The organisms in this group share characteristics of both dinosaurs that lived before they did and of birds,which evolved later.As such,they are

A) excellent examples of vestigial species that have gone extinct because their wings were insufficiently well developed to fly.
B) excellent examples of fossil intermediates that both support the predictions of descent with modification and help us understand the evolution of birds from their dinosaur ancestors.
C) excellent examples of fossil intermediates that both support the predictions of descent with modification and help us understand the evolution of dinosaurs from their bird ancestors.
D) excellent examples of how using DNA to study similarities and differences among organisms can help us infer evolutionary relationships among them.
E) excellent examples of evolutionary puzzles that cannot be explained by our current understanding of descent with modification.

Question 59

Which does NOT describe the body structure of Tiktaalik?

A) It had a long, flat head.
B) Gills were present.
C) It had sturdy ribs to support the body on land.
D) It had jointed fingers and toes.
E) Its neck was mobile.

Question 60

Tiktaalik is an important fossil because it is a(n)

A) intermediate fossil.
B) transitional fossil.
C) link between fish and tetrapods.
D) fish with useful terrestrial adaptations.
E) All of the above.

Question 61

Do you think the wing of a bird is homologous to the wing of a honeybee? Why or why not?

Question 62

Which of the following statements is TRUE about Tiktaalik?

A) Tiktaalik represents the very first true amphibian.
B) Tiktaalik was an animal that thrived in deep waters.
C) Tiktaalik developed their specialized fins for the purpose of walking on land.
D) Tiktaalik was able to raise its head above water but could not travel on land.
E) Tiktaalik was a predator.

Question 63

Which of the following statements is FALSE?

A) Homologous forelimbs are a result of common ancestry.
B) The forelimbs of tetrapods have the same common ancestor.
C) The human wrist is a structure that evolved in fish 375 million years ago.
D) Comparative anatomy is the study of bone structure in all organisms.
E) Variations in forelimb bone shape and function are evolutionary adaptations.

Question 64

Define homology.

Question 65

Which of the following may NOT indicate forelimb homology?

A) a similar structure of bones
B) the order of bones
C) the number of bones
D) the relative position of the bones
E) the function of the bones

Question 66

Comparative anatomy ultimately links organisms to

A) a family tree.
B) one another.
C) a relative.
D) a common descendent.
E) a common ancestor.

Question 67

Some snakes have small remnants of legs that they now use for clasping during mating.These leg remnants are

A) vestigial characteristics.
B) primitive arms.
C) faulty genitals.
D) homologous legs.
E) embryonic wings.

Question 68

Which of the following statements about homology is TRUE?

A) It demonstrates how the same environment can lead to different physical structures.
B) It demonstrates how different environments can lead to the same physical structures.
C) It demonstrates that similarity of structures is due to descent from a common ancestor.
D) It demonstrates that similarity of structures can occur, even in the absence of common ancestors.
E) It demonstrates that similarity of structures is due to random chance.

Question 69

The ____ -finned fish gave rise to tetrapods.

A) four
B) splay
C) ray
D) lobe
E) boney

Question 70

Homology in comparative anatomy refers to

A) a similar shape and size.
B) similarity in size and function.
C) similarity of structure and a common ancestor.
D) similarity and no common ancestor.
E) similarity of structure but not function.

Question 71

How can the human middle ear be similar to the jaw of a reptile or the bones gills of a fish?

Question 72

Define what transitional fossils are and discuss why they are so important to the study of evolution.

Question 73

The ____ were the intermediates between ray-finned fish and tetrapods.

A) amphibians
B) caecilians
C) lobe-finned fish
D) reptiles
E) decapods

Question 74

The humerus of Tiktaalik is homologous to the ____ of a human.

Question 75

The long bones of a bat wing are homologous to

A) the feathers of a bird.
B) the wings of an insect.
C) the humerus of a human.
D) the fingers of a frog.
E) ulnare of a wombat

Question 76

A structure inherited from an ancestor that no longer serves a function is a _______ structure.

A) homologous
B) primitive
C) faulty
D) vestigial
E) embryonic

Question 77

The similarity between the forearm of a human and an alligator suggests that

A) humans are reptiles (crocodilians).
B) humans once laid eggs.
C) alligators descended from mammals.
D) mammals descended from reptiles.
E) alligators and humans share a common ancestor.

Question 78

Compare the forearms of alligators and Tiktaalik.

Question 79

The wrist evolved in which organism 375 million years ago?

A) reptiles
B) fish
C) amphibians
D) birds
E) humans

Question 80

If you looked at the mouthparts of a grasshopper,a butterfly,and a mosquito,you would see that they are very different.Grasshopper mouthparts are adapted for cutting and grinding up tough plant food; butterflies have a single,long,curled sucking tube for drinking nectar; and mosquitoes have both a sucking tube and needlelike structures for piercing skin.In spite of their differences,though,all three insects (indeed,all 900,000 species of insects!)have mouthparts composed of the same anatomical structures in the same positions.These facts tell you that

A) insect mouthparts are homologous and demonstrate that all insects inherited the same basic anatomical structures from a single common ancestor.
B) insect mouthparts are vestigial structures inherited from a common ancestor in which they were useful.
C) insect mouthparts are developmental homologies that demonstrate common ancestry for all insects.
D) DNA sequence homology among insects is very strong.
E) insects are unrelated; their mouthparts represent adaptations to their different ecological requirements.