Exam 21: How Evolution Works

Use the diagram to answer the next question. Which of the following sequences is the one that most likely occurred in evolution of whales?

Use the diagram to answer the next question Fossil evidence indicates that modern whales and other cetaceans (dolphins and porpoises) are closely related to even-toed ungulates (hippopotamuses, pigs, deer, and cows). Which of the following predictions would you make if you wanted to test this idea using the amino acid sequence of hemoglobin?

Which of the following statements best describes Linnaeus' method of classifying organisms?

After a drought in 1977, researchers hypothesized that on the Galápagos Island Daphne Major, medium ground finches with large, deep beaks survived better than those with smaller beaks because they could more easily crack and eat the tough Tribulus cistoides fruits. A tourist company sets up reliable feeding stations with a variety of bird seeds (different types and sizes) so that tourists can get a better look at the finches. Which of the following events is now most likely to occur to finch beaks on this island?

In this diagram, each fork represents which of the following ideas?

Members of two different species possess a similar-looking structure that they use in a similar way to perform about the same function. Which of the following observations would suggest that the relationship more likely represents homology than convergent evolution?

The cow Bos primigenius (which is farmed for meat and milk) has a smaller brain and larger eyes than closely related species of wild ungulates. Which of the following statements best describes the process that led to differences between domesticated/farmed cows and their wild relatives?

Currently, two living elephant species (X and Y) are classified in the genus Loxodonta, and a third species (Z) is placed in the genus Elephas. Thus, which of the following statements would be accurate?

A species of mouse that is preyed on by owls (which can see color) at dawn and dusk varies in coat color between dark and light brown. Under which of the following conditions will NO evolution occur if climate change results in the soil color becoming darker?

Imagine that you are an explorer who has discovered an isolated land mass in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. You find a predator that resembles a North American wolf except that it lays eggs. You name it the "mid-ocean wolf." The physical similarity between the mid-ocean wolf and the North American wolf is most likely due to which of the following factors?

Over long periods of time, many cave-dwelling organisms have lost their eyes. Tapeworms have lost their digestive systems. Whales have lost their hind limbs. How can natural selection account for these losses?

James Hutton and Charles Lyell provided which of the following ideas that paved the way for Darwin's thinking?

Which of the following characteristics is most likely an adaptation?

Fossils of Thrinaxodon, a species that lived during the Triassic period, have been found in both South Africa and Antarctica. Thrinaxodon had a reptile-like skeleton and laid eggs, but small depressions on the front of its skull suggest it had whiskers and, therefore, fur. Thrinaxodon may have been endothermic (able to generate its own internal heat). Which of the following statements is likely most accurate about Thrinaxodon?

Given what we know about evolutionary biology, which of the following places would be the most likely to have the highest number of species that are unique to the area (that is, that had evolved in that place). Assume that the conditions have existed for at least a few million years.

Structures as different as human arms, bat wings, and dolphin flippers contain many of the same bones, which develop from similar embryonic tissues. These structural similarities are an example of ________.

Which of the following statements is accurate about an organ described as vestigial?

It has been observed that organisms on many islands are different from, but closely related to, similar forms found on the nearest continent. Which of the following possible conclusions is best derived from this observation?

Which of the following observations most strongly supports the common origin of all life on Earth?

Antibiotic resistance in bacteria is an increasingly dangerous public health problem. Which of the following strategies would be most likely to reduce public health problems?