Exam 2: Ecology’s Evolutionary Backdrop

Since the peak of the last glaciation,global temperatures have risen by about 8 degrees Celsius.Pollen records indicate:

A plant species is found on the mainland of Africa and a migratory bird species feeds on its seeds.These birds arrive on an island,defecate,and leave the seeds on this island.Let us assume the seeds will germinate.Over evolutionary time,what may become of these plants on the island?

A male bullfrog (Rana catesbeianus)is found to mate with more females and produce more offspring than any other male in a pond being studied.What would you say about this bullfrog's fitness?

During the industrialization of England,a species of moth developed what is known as industrial melanism.What does this term refer to?

Norfolk Island,located approximately 700 km from New Caledonia and New Zealand is an island where many endemic species have evolved.If more species in a group found on that island were better dispersers then you would expect:

Two adjacent populations of a species of deer may not diverge completely if:

As climate has changed over evolutionary time scales,different organisms have responded by:

A seismic event occurs,splitting a population of wolves in two.One half of the population is now exposed to a very mountainous and rocky habitat with much snow,while the other half of the population is left to live in a wooded forest habitat.After thousands of generations,another seismic event occurs and the population of wolves is now able to be one again.However,they will no longer mate with one another.This is an example of:

Present day distribution patterns of plants and animals are primarily due to:

You are at a museum and observe that the wing of a preserved bat resembles the wing of nearby preserved bird.You hypothesize that

______ structures are similar in superficial form or function.

Ecological speciation is comprised of which components:

Changes in temperature in the North Sea over the past million years caused changes in sea level that:

If a structure is superficial in form or function and is not derived from a common ancestor it is ________.However,if the structure is derived from an equivalent structure in a common ancestor it is considered _______.

Which scientist devised an orderly system for naming different organisms?

A student wants to test if a sessile species of a marine invertebrate (Actinia tenebrosa)grows differently in size and survives differently in a new environment where the water temperature and salinity are considerably different than where this organism typically grows.What type of experiment would allow this student to test for the local adaptation of this species?

You learn that many plants are chemically defended and that herbivorous predators have developed resistance to many of these plant defenses.However,it appears that plants have responded to herbivore resistance by producing more chemical defenses,which in turn deters some herbivores.Evidently,this process has occurred many times over the last millions of years.This is an example of:

The theory of evolution by means of natural selection relies on what established truths?

A structure that is derived from an equivalent structure in a common ancestor is called _________.

As Gondwanaland broke up,bands of vegetation developed nearly 100 million years later.Forty million years later distinct vegetation and climate were established.From when Gondwanaland began to break up,which process do you think most likely unfolded?