Question 1

Based on information provided in the tree below, which of the following statement(s) is/are accurate?

Accepted Answer

A)  The frog, dog, turtle, and lizard form a monophyletic group. 
B)  The fish is the ancestor of the rest of the species in the tree. 
C)  Frogs are older than birds. 
D)  all of the above 
E)  none of the above 
A)  The frog, dog, turtle, and lizard form a monophyletic group. 
B)  The fish is the ancestor of the rest of the species in the tree. 
C)  Frogs are older than birds. 
D)  all of the above 
E)  none of the above E

Question 2

The phylogeny of tetrapods and reveals that

Accepted Answer

A)  wrist bones emerged after the tetrapod lineage appeared in the fossil record. 
B)  the common ancestor of tetrapods and lobe-finned fish had stout, paddle-shaped fins. 
C)  when digits first emerged, every species had five or less. 
D)  none of the above 
A)  wrist bones emerged after the tetrapod lineage appeared in the fossil record. 
B)  the common ancestor of tetrapods and lobe-finned fish had stout, paddle-shaped fins. 
C)  when digits first emerged, every species had five or less. 
D)  none of the above B

Question 3

Which of the following is not a tetrapod?

Accepted Answer

A)  Physeter macrocephalus, a sperm whale 
B)  boa constrictor 
C)  Tiktaalik 
D)  Gallus gallus domesticus, a chicken 
A)  Physeter macrocephalus, a sperm whale 
B)  boa constrictor 
C)  Tiktaalik 
D)  Gallus gallus domesticus, a chicken C

Question 4

Given the tree below, which statement(s) is/are correct?

Accepted Answer

A)  The lineage leading to modern-day lemurs is older than the lineage leading to modern-day humans. 
B)  The monkeys form a monophyletic group. 
C)  a and b 
D)  none of the above 
A)  The lineage leading to modern-day lemurs is older than the lineage leading to modern-day humans. 
B)  The monkeys form a monophyletic group. 
C)  a and b 
D)  none of the above

Question 5

What might early theropods have used feathers for?

Accepted Answer

A)  to attract mates 
B)  to protect their nests 
C)  to fly 
D)  a and b 
E)  a, b, and c 
A)  to attract mates 
B)  to protect their nests 
C)  to fly 
D)  a and b 
E)  a, b, and c

Question 6

The following phylogeny shows that

Accepted Answer

A)  lobe-finned fish form a monophyletic clade. 
B)  tetrapods form a monophyletic clade. 
C)  ray-finned fish form a paraphyletic clade. 
D)  none of the above 
E)  all of the above 
A)  lobe-finned fish form a monophyletic clade. 
B)  tetrapods form a monophyletic clade. 
C)  ray-finned fish form a paraphyletic clade. 
D)  none of the above 
E)  all of the above

Question 7

You are constructing a phylogeny of a hypothetical group of insects. Several of the species have a pattern of four veins on the forewing while another group of species has a pattern of six veins. The three outgroups in your analysis all have a pattern of six veins. From this you can conclude that

Accepted Answer

A)  the trait of having six veins is a synapomorphy. 
B)  the species with six veins are more closely related to each other than they are to the any of the species with four veins. 
C)  the trait of having four veins is a synapomorphy. 
D)  a and b 
E)  b and c 
A)  the trait of having six veins is a synapomorphy. 
B)  the species with six veins are more closely related to each other than they are to the any of the species with four veins. 
C)  the trait of having four veins is a synapomorphy. 
D)  a and b 
E)  b and c

Question 8

Compare a genealogical tree with a phylogenetic tree. Use a drawing to help explain your answer.

Accepted Answer

A genealogical tree and a phylogenetic t

Question 9

In the tree below, assume that the ancestor was an herb (not a tree) without leaves or seeds. Which currently existing species has/have this same combination of traits?

Accepted Answer

A)  fern 
B)  Psilotum 
C)  clubmoss 
D)  a and c 
E)  b and c 
A)  fern 
B)  Psilotum 
C)  clubmoss 
D)  a and c 
E)  b and c

Question 10

How does the fossil record provide evidence that the use of feathers for flight by birds is an exaptation?

Accepted Answer

The fossil record provides evidence that

Question 11

Referring to the tree below, which is an accurate statement about relationships?

Accepted Answer

A)  A gorilla is more closely related to a human than it is to an orangutan. 
B)  A gorilla is more closely related to an orangutan than a human. 
C)  A gorilla is equally related to a human and an orangutan. 
D)  An orangutan is related to chimpanzees and orangutans but not humans. 
A)  A gorilla is more closely related to a human than it is to an orangutan. 
B)  A gorilla is more closely related to an orangutan than a human. 
C)  A gorilla is equally related to a human and an orangutan. 
D)  An orangutan is related to chimpanzees and orangutans but not humans.

Question 12

Birds belong to a group of dinosaurs called the therapods, which also includes

Accepted Answer

A)  Tyrannosaurus. 
B)  Stegosaurus. 
C)  Triceratops. 
D)  Pterodactylus. 
A)  Tyrannosaurus. 
B)  Stegosaurus. 
C)  Triceratops. 
D)  Pterodactylus.

Question 13

If species A and B are more closely related to each other than either is to species C, then species A and B must

Accepted Answer

A)  share a more recent common ancestor. 
B)  be more similar physically overall. 
C)  share more derived homologies (synapomorphies). 
D)  a and c 
E)  a, b, and c 
A)  share a more recent common ancestor. 
B)  be more similar physically overall. 
C)  share more derived homologies (synapomorphies). 
D)  a and c 
E)  a, b, and c

Question 14

Male pipefish have a brood pouch in which they carry and protect developing embryos. The gene patristacin plays a major role in the formation and function of the pouch. An evolutionary analysis revealed that patristacin is involved in liver and kidney function in all other fish (other male fish do not produce a brood pouch). This provides an example of

Accepted Answer

A)  co-option. 
B)  irreducible complexity. 
C)  group selection. 
D)  trade-offs. 
A)  co-option. 
B)  irreducible complexity. 
C)  group selection. 
D)  trade-offs.

Question 15

Referring to the phylogenetic trees below which statement(s) is/are correct?

Accepted Answer

A)  Tree A proposes that the camera eye of mollusks and vertebrates is homologous; tree B proposes that the camera eye of mollusks and vertebrates arose through convergent evolution. 
B)  Tree B proposes that the camera eye of mollusks and vertebrates is homologous; tree A proposes that the camera eye of mollusks and vertebrates arose through convergent evolution. 
C)  Tree B is more parsimonious. 
D)  a and c 
E)  b and c 
A)  Tree A proposes that the camera eye of mollusks and vertebrates is homologous; tree B proposes that the camera eye of mollusks and vertebrates arose through convergent evolution. 
B)  Tree B proposes that the camera eye of mollusks and vertebrates is homologous; tree A proposes that the camera eye of mollusks and vertebrates arose through convergent evolution. 
C)  Tree B is more parsimonious. 
D)  a and c 
E)  b and c

Question 16

The closest living relatives of tetrapod include

Accepted Answer

A)  coelacanths. 
B)  lungfishes. 
C)  telosts. 
D)  a and b 
E)  all of the above 
A)  coelacanths. 
B)  lungfishes. 
C)  telosts. 
D)  a and b 
E)  all of the above

Question 17

You are having coffee with a couple of friends. One says, "I saw a beautiful dinosaur in my yard this morning." The other one says, "You're crazy, you couldn't have seen a dinosaur!" Use the phylogeny below, which includes birds and four different dinosaur genera, and the logic of phylogenetic systematics to argue that maybe your first friend isn't so crazy after all.

Accepted Answer

The answer of You are having coffee with a couple...

Question 18

A trait that may be co-opted for a new function, such as bird feathers, is called a(n)

Accepted Answer

A)  adaptation. 
B)  complex adaptation. 
C)  exaptation. 
D)  polytomy. 
A)  adaptation. 
B)  complex adaptation. 
C)  exaptation. 
D)  polytomy.

Question 19

It is possible that the middle ear fully separated from the lower jaw at least twice within the mammalian lineage. Evidence of this convergent evolution comes from

Accepted Answer

A)  a new fossil of a monotreme-like mammal with the bones of its middle ear still connected to its lower jaw. 
B)  a new fossil of a therian-like mammal with the bones of its middle ear still connected to its lower jaw. 
C)  a new fossil of a monotreme-like mammal with the bones of its middle ear fully separated from its lower jaw. 
D)  There is no evidence; the mammalian middle ear could only have evolved once. 
A)  a new fossil of a monotreme-like mammal with the bones of its middle ear still connected to its lower jaw. 
B)  a new fossil of a therian-like mammal with the bones of its middle ear still connected to its lower jaw. 
C)  a new fossil of a monotreme-like mammal with the bones of its middle ear fully separated from its lower jaw. 
D)  There is no evidence; the mammalian middle ear could only have evolved once.

Question 20

Which of the following is not an example of a homology?

Accepted Answer

A)  a human foot and an orangutan foot 
B)  mammalian ear bones and synapsid jaw bones 
C)  an albatross wing and a bat wing 
D)  a dragonfly wing and a bat wing 
A)  a human foot and an orangutan foot 
B)  mammalian ear bones and synapsid jaw bones 
C)  an albatross wing and a bat wing 
D)  a dragonfly wing and a bat wing

Based on information provided in the tree below, which of the following statement(s) is/are accurate?

The phylogeny of tetrapods and reveals that

Which of the following is not a tetrapod?

Given the tree below, which statement(s) is/are correct?

What might early theropods have used feathers for?

The following phylogeny shows that

You are constructing a phylogeny of a hypothetical group of insects. Several of the species have a pattern of four veins on the forewing while another group of species has a pattern of six veins. The three outgroups in your analysis all have a pattern of six veins. From this you can conclude that

Compare a genealogical tree with a phylogenetic tree. Use a drawing to help explain your answer.

In the tree below, assume that the ancestor was an herb (not a tree) without leaves or seeds. Which currently existing species has/have this same combination of traits?

How does the fossil record provide evidence that the use of feathers for flight by birds is an exaptation?

Referring to the tree below, which is an accurate statement about relationships?

Birds belong to a group of dinosaurs called the therapods, which also includes

If species A and B are more closely related to each other than either is to species C, then species A and B must

Referring to the phylogenetic trees below which statement(s) is/are correct?

The closest living relatives of tetrapod include

A trait that may be co-opted for a new function, such as bird feathers, is called a(n)

It is possible that the middle ear fully separated from the lower jaw at least twice within the mammalian lineage. Evidence of this convergent evolution comes from

Which of the following is not an example of a homology?

The Whale and the Virus: How Scientists Study Evolution

From Natural Philosophy to Darwin: a Brief History of Evolutionary Ideas

What the Rocks Say: How Geology and Paleontology Reveal the History of Life

Raw Material: Heritable Variation Among Individuals

The Ways of Change: Drift and Selection

Beyond Alleles: Quantitative Genetics and the Evolution of Phenotypes

The History in Our Genes

From Genes to Traits: the Evolution of Genetic Networks and Development

Natural Selection: Empirical Studies in the Wild

Sex: Causes and Consequences

After Conception: the Evolution of Life History and Parental Care

The Origin of Species

Macroevolution: the Long Run

Intimate Partnerships: How Species Adapt to Each Other

Brains and Behavior

Human Evolution: a New Kind of Ape

Evolutionary Medicine

Filters

Exam 4: The Tree of Life: How Biologists Use Phylogeny to Reconstruct the Deep Past

Based on information provided in the tree below, which of the following statement(s) is/are accurate?

The phylogeny of tetrapods and reveals that

Which of the following is not a tetrapod?

Given the tree below, which statement(s) is/are correct?

What might early theropods have used feathers for?

The following phylogeny shows that

You are constructing a phylogeny of a hypothetical group of insects. Several of the species have a pattern of four veins on the forewing while another group of species has a pattern of six veins. The three outgroups in your analysis all have a pattern of six veins. From this you can conclude that

Compare a genealogical tree with a phylogenetic tree. Use a drawing to help explain your answer.

In the tree below, assume that the ancestor was an herb (not a tree) without leaves or seeds. Which currently existing species has/have this same combination of traits?

How does the fossil record provide evidence that the use of feathers for flight by birds is an exaptation?

Referring to the tree below, which is an accurate statement about relationships?

Birds belong to a group of dinosaurs called the therapods, which also includes

If species A and B are more closely related to each other than either is to species C, then species A and B must

Referring to the phylogenetic trees below which statement(s) is/are correct?

The closest living relatives of tetrapod include

A trait that may be co-opted for a new function, such as bird feathers, is called a(n)

It is possible that the middle ear fully separated from the lower jaw at least twice within the mammalian lineage. Evidence of this convergent evolution comes from

Which of the following is not an example of a homology?

The Whale and the Virus: How Scientists Study Evolution

From Natural Philosophy to Darwin: a Brief History of Evolutionary Ideas

What the Rocks Say: How Geology and Paleontology Reveal the History of Life

Raw Material: Heritable Variation Among Individuals

The Ways of Change: Drift and Selection

Beyond Alleles: Quantitative Genetics and the Evolution of Phenotypes

The History in Our Genes

From Genes to Traits: the Evolution of Genetic Networks and Development

Natural Selection: Empirical Studies in the Wild

Sex: Causes and Consequences

After Conception: the Evolution of Life History and Parental Care

The Origin of Species

Macroevolution: the Long Run

Intimate Partnerships: How Species Adapt to Each Other

Brains and Behavior

Human Evolution: a New Kind of Ape

Evolutionary Medicine

Filters