Deck 19: The Evolution of Vertebrate Diversity

Question 1

Craniates are chordates that all possess

A)a head.
B)jaws.
C)a vertebral column.
D)amniotic eggs.

Answer 1

A

Question 2

Unlike sharks and rays, ray-finned fishes have

A)an operculum.
B)a lateral line system.
C)a flexible skeleton made of cartilage.
D)hinged jaws.

Answer 2

A

Question 3

Jaws appear to have evolved from

A)the fusion of many bony elements found in the skin of the neck region of jawless ancestors.
B)a large, bony shield that protruded from between the base of the pectoral fins.
C)modification of a disk of bones surrounding the mouth in lampreys.
D)skeletal rods that supported gill slits near the mouth.

Answer 3

D

Question 4

Recall that the cuticle seals plant surfaces and helps plants conserve water, and the seed helps derived plant groups to reproduce effectively on dry land. The analogous adaptations in reptiles are ________ (analogous to the cuticle)and ________ (analogous to the seed).

A)scales; jellylike egg masses
B)scales; the amniotic egg
C)scales; aquatic larvae
D)claws; lungs

Question 5

The key derived character of the lobe-finned fish is

A)the lateral line system.
B)the series of rod-shaped bones in their pectoral and pelvic fins.
C)the operculum.
D)the flattened scales covering their skin.

Question 6

Lampreys differ from fishes in that lampreys

A)lack a backbone.
B)lack an endoskeleton.
C)lack jaws.
D)possess a backbone and skull.

Question 7

The vertebrate group that describes all jawed vertebrates with two pairs of limbs is the

A)craniates.
B)amniotes.
C)tetrapods.
D)mammals.

Question 8

Mammals

A)evolved from birds.
B)all give birth to live young.
C)all lay eggs.
D)have hair and mammary glands.

Question 9

Which animals are ectothermic?

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

Question 10

By far the largest number of extant fish species on Earth have

A)a cartilaginous skeleton.
B)rasping tongues to enhance their parasitic behavior.
C)an operculum and swim bladder.
D)high economic importance for their skin, which can be made into faux leather.

Question 11

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

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

Question 12

Which of the following is characteristic of all vertebrates?

A)a skull and a backbone consisting of vertebrae
B)a calcified (hard)skeleton and four legs
C)a hinged jaw
D)lungs or lung derivatives

Question 13

The duck-billed platypus and other monotremes differ from other mammals in that they

A)are aquatic.
B)lay eggs.
C)have mammary glands.
D)have hair.

Question 14

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

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.

Question 15

Amphibians were diverse and abundant in the lush swamp forests of the ________, which is sometimes referred to as the age of the amphibians.

A)Cambrian period
B)Pleistocene epoch
C)Mesozoic era
D)Carboniferous period

Question 16

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

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 17

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

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

Question 18

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

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 19

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

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

Question 20

Which of the following statements best describes the current scientific view of birds?

A)a group of feathered, endothermic dinosaurs
B)a group of feathered, ectothermic lizards that lack teeth
C)a group of flying, endothermic reptiles that have lost teeth, the amniotic egg, and other heavy body features as an adaptation for flight
D)a group of flying mammals that are derived from monotremes, which also lay amniotic eggs

Question 21

Which of the following animal groups is characterized by the absence of tails?

A)apes
B)Old World monkeys
C)New World monkeys
D)lemurs

Question 22

Human DNA and chimpanzee DNA

A)differ by about 1%.
B)differ by about 3%.
C)differ by more than 10%.
D)differ by the same amount that human DNA differs from orangutan DNA.

Question 23

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

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

Question 24

Which of the following organisms is a monotreme?

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

Question 25

The last common ancestor shared by humans and chimpanzees lived about

A)6,000-8,000 years ago.
B)5-7 million years ago.
C)25-40 million years ago.
D)1)5-2.5 billion years ago.

Question 26

Natural populations of lemurs are found in

A)Borneo.
B)North Africa.
C)New Zealand.
D)Madagascar.

Question 27

The hominin group includes ________.

A)Homo sapiens only
B)Homo sapiens and several extinct human relatives.
C)humans and all other apes.
D)all anthropoids.

Question 28

________ spend almost all of their time on the ground, instead of in trees.

A)Gorillas
B)Orangutans
C)Gibbons
D)Chimpanzees

Question 29

Which of the following animals is an ape?

A)New World monkey
B)Old World monkey
C)orangutan
D)tarsier

Question 30

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)?

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

Question 31

Which of the following organisms is a marsupial?

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

Question 32

Reptiles are not able to eat as frequently as mammals and birds can eat. This is due to a trait that mammals and birds share but that reptiles do not have. What is this trait?

A)airfoils
B)endothermy
C)amniotic egg
D)teeth

Question 33

The forward-facing eyes shared by all primates help them in

A)manipulating small objects.
B)depth perception as they navigate through forests.
C)swinging from tree branches.
D)seeing in the dark.

Question 34

Complete the analogy: ________ is/are to birds as ________ is/are to mammals.

A)Wings; legs
B)Water; milk
C)Feathers; hair
D)Wings; opposable thumbs

Question 35

Hominin fossil footprints that are obviously bipedal date to about ________ years ago.

A)50,000
B)100,000
C)3)6 million
D)12 million

Question 36

Prehensile tails are found among

A)Old World monkeys.
B)most hominoids.
C)New World monkeys.
D)all primates.

Question 37

Which part of the body is likely to be much more diverse in mammals compared to that in other groups?

A)the teeth
B)the structure of the vertebrae
C)the structure of the limbs
D)the jawbone

Question 38

Compared to other primates, anthropoids have

A)a decreased reliance upon vision.
B)a stronger reliance upon smell.
C)a fully opposable thumb.
D)smaller total body size in most cases.

Question 39

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

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

Question 40

A prehensile tail is like an opposable thumb in that both

A)evolved before the anthropoids.
B)are used for grasping.
C)can be fully bent in any direction.
D)are characteristics of the earliest primates.

Question 41

According to the fossil record, the genus Homo first arose in

A)North America.
B)Europe.
C)Asia.
D)Africa.

Question 42

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

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

Question 43

Like many insects, some amphibians undergo ________ in their life cycle as they have distinct larval and adult stages.

A)aquatic development followed by terrestrial existence
B)development in a nest followed by flight
C)metamorphosis
D)alternation of generations

Question 44

The fossil "hobbits" discovered in Indonesia may be ________ that lived ________.

A)a newly discovered species of Homo; as recently as 18,000 years ago
B)a population of Homo sapiens with a genetic disorder; at the same time as the Neanderthals
C)a lineage of early hominins; about 5 million years ago
D)a dwarf lineage of Australopithecus; around the same time as "Lucy"

Question 45

Which of the following statements is true?

A)A line of lobe-finned fishes gave rise to tetrapods, and a line of tetrapods gave rise to modern amphibians.
B)A line of tetrapods gave rise to chordates, and a line of lobe-finned fishes gave rise to tetrapods.
C)A line of amphibians gave rise to tetrapods, and a line of lobe-finned fishes gave rise to modern amphibians.
D)Tetrapods and amphibians evolved at approximately the same time, while lobe-finned fishes evolved 2 million years later.

Question 46

Complete the analogy: ________ are to vertebrate evolution as ________ are to plant evolution

A)Lungs; stomata
B)Amniotic eggs; seeds
C)Limbs; flowers
D)Opposable thumbs; hyphae

Question 47

Complete the analogy: ________ are to plant evolution as ________ is/are to vertebrate evolution.

A)Ferns; insects
B)Mosses; Tiktaalik
C)Angiosperms; fungi
D)Fungi; birds

Question 48

Compared to other hominins, modern Homo sapiens display a particular ability for

A)symbolic thought.
B)making stone tools.
C)upright walking.
D)manipulating objects with their hands.

Question 49

Of all of the chordate groups, why are there only two amniote groups (reptilia and mammalia)?

A)Amniotes are the only chordate group that has successfully survived the transition to land.
B)The other craniate groups had brains that were not developed enough to allow the organisms to develop tool-building survival skills.
C)The vertebral columns of the other vertebrates were not strong enough to survive the transition to land.
D)The other jawed vertebrates were not able to obtain enough food to survive the transition to land.

Question 50

Which of the following statements is true?

A)Sharks have a skeleton made of bone, while ray-finned fishes have flexible skeletons made of cartilage.
B)Ray-finned fishes have a skeleton made of bone, while sharks have flexible skeletons made of cartilage.
C)Sharks have a series of rod-shaped bones in their muscular pectoral and pelvic fins, while lobe-fins have flexible skeletons made of cartilage.
D)Ray-finned fishes have a series of rod-shaped bones in their muscular pectoral and pelvic fins, while lobe-fins have flexible skeletons made of cartilage.

Question 51

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

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

Question 52

The earliest hominin to be found outside of Africa belongs to which species?

A)Australopithecus afarensis
B)Homo habilis
C)Homo erectus
D)Homo sapiens

Question 53

The most recent evidence clarifying the relationship between modern humans and Neanderthals comes from analysis of

A)skeletal structure.
B)the types of tools that were made by Neanderthals.
C)Neanderthal artwork and burial rites.
D)Neanderthal mitochondrial DNA.

Question 54

Which of the following would a shark not be able to detect with its lateral line system?

A)schools of fish
B)mobile predators
C)stationary objects
D)sand on the bottom of the ocean floor

Question 55

Fossil and genetic evidence strongly supports the idea that modern humans

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 56

Neanderthals are best described as

A)direct ancestors to modern humans.
B)direct ancestors to modern Europeans but not to other human populations.
C)a localized form or subspecies of Homo sapiens that was well-adapted to living in caves and carrying clubs.
D)a hominin that colonized Europe independently of Homo sapiens and that may or may not have interbred with modern humans.

Question 57

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 ________.

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

Question 58

Human skin color likely represents a locally adapted compromise between

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 59

The American brook lamprey is a freshwater lamprey that lives in streams. Lampreys move streambed stones to make a nest in which to lay their eggs. Which defining feature of the lamprey might enable it to move these stones?

A)slime
B)head with a skull
C)notochord
D)oral disk

Question 60

Which extinct hominin first appeared about 1.9 million years ago and had a larger brain than Homo habilis, its immediate predecessor?

A)Homo ergaster
B)Homo neanderthalensis
C)Homo sapiens
D)Australopithecus

Question 61

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

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

Question 62

After reading the paragraphs below, answer the questions that follow.
Bipedalism is one of the most important characteristics of hominin evolution. The appearance of bipedalism led to anatomical changes that are considered to be distinguishing characteristics of hominin fossils. The evidence for bipedalism is supported by fossil evidence from more than 4 million years ago and 3.6-million-year-old footprints in volcanic ash.
Recently, however, scientists have focused on the link between tooth structure and diet in the evolution of the early hominins, specifically in Australopithecus species. Detailed studies of hominin dental features have provided evidence of an important dietary shift that led to adaptive radiation within this genus. Most of the evidence comes from analyses of tooth size and shape, microscopic wear patterns on teeth, and jaw structure. The evidence suggests that fibrous plant materials became more important through the Pliocene, perhaps as critical components in the diet of some species.
Evidence from fossil dentition suggests that Australopithecus species

A)evolved specifically to eat meat.
B)experienced a decrease in both tooth size and brain size.
C)were direct ancestors of modern humans.
D)were adapted to function successfully in a wide range of habitats.

Question 63

According to this figure, which two groups are most closely related?

A)tarsiers and gibbons
B)gorillas and orangutans
C)chimpanzees and gibbons
D)Old World monkeys and humans

Question 64

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?

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 65

According to this figure, which group includes the closest living relatives to tetrapods such as amphibians, reptiles, and mammals?

A)tunicates
B)sharks and rays
C)ray-finned fishes
D)lobe-finned fishes

Question 66

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

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

Question 67

Use the figure below to answer the following questions.

Suppose scientists discovered an organism that had a head with a brain at the anterior end of the dorsal nerve, eyes and other sensory organs, a skull, and a vertebral column. The organism could not be

A)lamprey.
B)hagfish.
C)ray-finned shark.
D)amphibian.

Question 68

Which line on the graph corresponds to an amniote?

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

Question 69

After reading the paragraphs below, answer the questions that follow.
Bipedalism is one of the most important characteristics of hominin evolution. The appearance of bipedalism led to anatomical changes that are considered to be distinguishing characteristics of hominin fossils. The evidence for bipedalism is supported by fossil evidence from more than 4 million years ago and 3.6-million-year-old footprints in volcanic ash.
Recently, however, scientists have focused on the link between tooth structure and diet in the evolution of the early hominins, specifically in Australopithecus species. Detailed studies of hominin dental features have provided evidence of an important dietary shift that led to adaptive radiation within this genus. Most of the evidence comes from analyses of tooth size and shape, microscopic wear patterns on teeth, and jaw structure. The evidence suggests that fibrous plant materials became more important through the Pliocene, perhaps as critical components in the diet of some species.
What is the most likely evolutionary link between bipedalism and changes in the diet of early hominids?

A)Bipedal species would be more likely to remain in one type of habitat.
B)Bipedalism led to new farming practices.
C)It is easier to escape predators with an upright posture.
D)The greater ability to move to new habitats facilitated exploitation of new foods.

Question 70

Use the figure below to answer the following questions.

Which of the following clades is most directly related to lancelets?

A)ray-finned fishes
B)lampreys
C)hagfishes
D)lobe-fins

Question 71

Use the figure below to answer the following questions.

The main difference between the earliest evolved tetrapods and the most recently evolved tetrapods is that

A)later tetrapods have larger brains.
B)later tetrapods produce milk to feed their young.
C)early tetrapods lack legs.
D)early tetrapods lack a vertebral column.

Question 72

Which character of vertebrates is associated with colonization of land?

A)opposable thumbs
B)lungs
C)internal fertilization
D)gills