Question 1

Which bird adaptation is probably less well-developed in flightless birds such as penguins and ostriches?

Accepted Answer

A) honeycombed bone structure 
B) amniotic egg 
C) vertebrae 
D) presence of feathers 
A) honeycombed bone structure 
B) amniotic egg 
C) vertebrae 
D) presence of feathers A

Question 2

Based on Acanthostega fossils, scientists now believe that the earliest tetrapods

Accepted Answer

A) were fully terrestrial. 
B) were amphibians that used their limbs to drag themselves over the land from one water hole to another. 
C) were fish that used their limbs to raise themselves out of the water to get gulps of air for oxygen. 
D) were reptiles that resembled crocodiles. 
A) were fully terrestrial. 
B) were amphibians that used their limbs to drag themselves over the land from one water hole to another. 
C) were fish that used their limbs to raise themselves out of the water to get gulps of air for oxygen. 
D) were reptiles that resembled crocodiles. C

Question 3

Of the over 19,000 new species described for the first time in 2009, more than half were

Accepted Answer

A) marine organisms. 
B) plants. 
C) insects. 
D) vertebrates. 
A) marine organisms. 
B) plants. 
C) insects. 
D) vertebrates. C

Question 4

"Lucy," who belongs to the group ________, was a bipedal hominin with a brain smaller than that of humans.

Accepted Answer

A) Australopithecus 
B) Homo erectus 
C) Ardipithecus 
D) Homo habilis 
A) Australopithecus 
B) Homo erectus 
C) Ardipithecus 
D) Homo habilis

Question 5

-Refer to the figure above. Suppose a fossil was found and identified to be a species of approximately 3.5 million years old. This fossil could be a representative of which species?

Accepted Answer

A) Australopithecus afarensis or Australopithecus anamensis 
B) Kenyanthropus platyops or Australopithecus africanus 
C) Kenyanthropus platyops or Australopithecus afarensis 
D) Australopithecus afarensis or Australopithecus africanus 
A) Australopithecus afarensis or Australopithecus anamensis 
B) Kenyanthropus platyops or Australopithecus africanus 
C) Kenyanthropus platyops or Australopithecus afarensis 
D) Australopithecus afarensis or Australopithecus africanus

Question 6

Which line on the graph corresponds to an amniote?

Accepted Answer

A) A 
B) B 
C) C 
D) could be A or B 
A) A 
B) B 
C) C 
D) could be A or B

Question 7

A key derived character of sharks and rays that distinguishes them from ray-finned fishes is

Accepted Answer

A) jaws and a swim bladder. 
B) vertebrae. 
C) calcified (hard)bones. 
D) a skeleton made of cartilage 
A) jaws and a swim bladder. 
B) vertebrae. 
C) calcified (hard)bones. 
D) a skeleton made of cartilage

Question 8

Which of the following organisms is a marsupial?

Accepted Answer

A) echidna 
B) kangaroo 
C) whale 
D) zebra 
A) echidna 
B) kangaroo 
C) whale 
D) zebra

Question 9

Which of the following statements best summarizes the difference between ectothermic and endothermic organisms?

Accepted Answer

A) Ectotherms are warm-blooded, but endotherms are cold-blooded. 
B) Endotherms are warm-blooded, but ectotherms are cold-blooded. 
C) Endotherms control their temperature, but ectotherms have no control over their temperature. 
D) Ectotherms absorb external heat, but endotherms use metabolic heat to maintain a warm, steady body temperature. 
A) Ectotherms are warm-blooded, but endotherms are cold-blooded. 
B) Endotherms are warm-blooded, but ectotherms are cold-blooded. 
C) Endotherms control their temperature, but ectotherms have no control over their temperature. 
D) Ectotherms absorb external heat, but endotherms use metabolic heat to maintain a warm, steady body temperature.

Question 10

Which of the following options lists the major groups or genera from the fossil record in the correct order from earliest to most recent?

Accepted Answer

A) Australopithecus, Sahelanthropus, Homo 
B) Sahelanthropus, Ardipithecus, Australopithecus, Homo 
C) Ardipithecus, Sahelanthropus, Australopithecus, Homo 
D) Sahelanthropus, Homo, Australopithecus, Ardipithecus 
A) Australopithecus, Sahelanthropus, Homo 
B) Sahelanthropus, Ardipithecus, Australopithecus, Homo 
C) Ardipithecus, Sahelanthropus, Australopithecus, Homo 
D) Sahelanthropus, Homo, Australopithecus, Ardipithecus

Question 11

Fossil and genetic evidence strongly supports the idea that modern humans

Accepted Answer

A) independently arose from three different ancestral Homo species in Africa and Eurasia. 
B) all derive from a single African lineage that spread from there into other parts of the world starting about 50,000 years ago. 
C) derive from an African lineage but also have genes derived from mixing with several Eurasian descendants of Homo erectus. 
D) derive from Neanderthals that independently evolved the features of modern humans in Europe and Africa. 
A) independently arose from three different ancestral Homo species in Africa and Eurasia. 
B) all derive from a single African lineage that spread from there into other parts of the world starting about 50,000 years ago. 
C) derive from an African lineage but also have genes derived from mixing with several Eurasian descendants of Homo erectus. 
D) derive from Neanderthals that independently evolved the features of modern humans in Europe and Africa.

Question 12

Which of the following statements best describes how flight and feathers are related in the evolution of birds?

Accepted Answer

A) The first flying birds did not have feathers, which evolved later. 
B) Feathers and flight evolved at the same time. 
C) The first feathered ancestors to birds did not fly but may have used their feathers for insulation and display. 
D) Feathers are soft and do not leave fossils or fossil traces, so it is unknown which organisms first had feathers. 
A) The first flying birds did not have feathers, which evolved later. 
B) Feathers and flight evolved at the same time. 
C) The first feathered ancestors to birds did not fly but may have used their feathers for insulation and display. 
D) Feathers are soft and do not leave fossils or fossil traces, so it is unknown which organisms first had feathers.

Question 13

All humans alive today have inherited their mitochondrial DNA from some individual female common ancestor. Studies indicate this woman probably lived about ________ years ago, when fossil evidence indicates that Homo sapiens was restricted to ________.

Accepted Answer

A) 20,000; Africa 
B) 50,000; Africa and Asia 
C) 180,000; Africa 
D) 500,000; Africa, Asia, and Europe 
A) 20,000; Africa 
B) 50,000; Africa and Asia 
C) 180,000; Africa 
D) 500,000; Africa, Asia, and Europe

Question 14

________ appears to have been the first hominin to use stone tools.

Accepted Answer

A) Homo erectus 
B) Homo habilis 
C) Ardipithecus 
D) Australopithecus 
A) Homo erectus 
B) Homo habilis 
C) Ardipithecus 
D) Australopithecus

Question 15

The Salalizard is a fictional vertebrate that lives in the forest and appears to be half salamander and half lizard. You are not allowed to collect any wild animals, so you decide to take a video of it to show your colleagues. What behavior best distinguishes the Salalizard as either a salamander (amphibian)or a lizard (reptile)?

Accepted Answer

A) what the animal eats 
B) if it lives in trees 
C) where it reproduces 
D) whether it is active at night 
A) what the animal eats 
B) if it lives in trees 
C) where it reproduces 
D) whether it is active at night

Question 16

Human skin color likely represents a locally adapted compromise between

Accepted Answer

A) the need to block UV radiation that causes cancer and the need to absorb sunlight for heat. 
B) the need to block UV radiation that destroys folate and the need to synthesize vitamin D. 
C) the need to block UV radiation that destroys folate and the need to absorb sunlight for heat. 
D) the need to blend in with the environment and the need to absorb sunlight for heat. 
A) the need to block UV radiation that causes cancer and the need to absorb sunlight for heat. 
B) the need to block UV radiation that destroys folate and the need to synthesize vitamin D. 
C) the need to block UV radiation that destroys folate and the need to absorb sunlight for heat. 
D) the need to blend in with the environment and the need to absorb sunlight for heat.

Question 17

Which animals are ectothermic?

Accepted Answer

A) frogs and mammals 
B) lizards and birds 
C) turtles and lizards 
D) birds and mammals 
A) frogs and mammals 
B) lizards and birds 
C) turtles and lizards 
D) birds and mammals

Question 18

Which of the following adaptations allowed reptiles to complete their life cycles on land?

Accepted Answer

A) lungs 
B) ectothermic metabolism 
C) an amniotic egg 
D) four legs 
A) lungs 
B) ectothermic metabolism 
C) an amniotic egg 
D) four legs

Question 19

-According to this figure, which species lived concurrently with Homo ergaster?

Accepted Answer

A) Australopithecus anamensis 
B) Australopithecus africanus 
C) Paranthropus boisei 
D) Homo sapiens 
A) Australopithecus anamensis 
B) Australopithecus africanus 
C) Paranthropus boisei 
D) Homo sapiens

Question 20

Which of the following is the first distinctively hominin trait to appear in the fossil record?

Accepted Answer

A) sophisticated stone tools 
B) increased brain size 
C) upright walking (bipedalism) 
D) a very long period of parental care 
A) sophisticated stone tools 
B) increased brain size 
C) upright walking (bipedalism) 
D) a very long period of parental care

Exam 19: The Evolution of Vertebrate Diversity

Which bird adaptation is probably less well-developed in flightless birds such as penguins and ostriches?

Based on Acanthostega fossils, scientists now believe that the earliest tetrapods

Of the over 19,000 new species described for the first time in 2009, more than half were

"Lucy," who belongs to the group ________, was a bipedal hominin with a brain smaller than that of humans.

-Refer to the figure above. Suppose a fossil was found and identified to be a species of approximately 3.5 million years old. This fossil could be a representative of which species?

Which line on the graph corresponds to an amniote?

A key derived character of sharks and rays that distinguishes them from ray-finned fishes is

Which of the following organisms is a marsupial?

Which of the following statements best summarizes the difference between ectothermic and endothermic organisms?

Which of the following options lists the major groups or genera from the fossil record in the correct order from earliest to most recent?

Fossil and genetic evidence strongly supports the idea that modern humans

Which of the following statements best describes how flight and feathers are related in the evolution of birds?

All humans alive today have inherited their mitochondrial DNA from some individual female common ancestor. Studies indicate this woman probably lived about ________ years ago, when fossil evidence indicates that Homo sapiens was restricted to ________.

________ appears to have been the first hominin to use stone tools.

Human skin color likely represents a locally adapted compromise between

Which animals are ectothermic?

Which of the following adaptations allowed reptiles to complete their life cycles on land?

-According to this figure, which species lived concurrently with Homo ergaster?

Which of the following is the first distinctively hominin trait to appear in the fossil record?

Biology: Exploring Life

The Chemical Basis of Life

The Molecules of Cells

A Tour of the Cell

The Working Cell

How Cells Harvest Chemical Energy

Photosynthesis: Using Light to Make Food

The Cellular Basis of Reproduction and Inheritance

Patterns of Inheritance

Molecular Biology of the Gene

How Genes Are Controlled

DNA Technology and Genomics

How Populations Evolve

The Origin of Species

Tracing Evolutionary History

Microbial Life: Prokaryotes and Protists

The Evolution of Plant and Fungal Diversity

The Evolution of Invertebrate Diversity

Unifying Concepts of Animal Structure and Function

Nutrition and Digestion

Gas Exchange

Circulation

the Immune System

Control of Body Temperature and Water Balance

Hormones and the Endocrine System

Reproduction and Embryonic Development

Nervous Systems

the Senses

How Animals Move

Plant Structure, Growth, and Reproduction

Plant Nutrition and Transport

Control Systems in Plants

the Biosphere: an Introduction to Earths Diverse Environments

Behavioral Adaptations to the Environment

Population Ecology

Communities and Ecosystems

Conservation Biology

Filters

All humans alive today have inherited their mitochondrial DNA from some individual female common ancestor. Studies indicate this woman probably lived about years ago, when fossil evidence indicates that Homo sapiens was restricted to .