Biological Evidence and the Fossil Record Quiz Flashcards
Marsupials are found in North America and Australia, but they would not have been able to swim across the ocean. According to scientists, how did this group of organisms come to live on two separate continents?
The continents were once connected, and marsupials were able to migrate over the land
What is the value of a transitional fossil?
Transitional forms show the evolutionary steps between species
Which kind of evidence studies mineralized bone, footprints, or organisms trapped in amber to determine common ancestry?
Fossils
What do gradualism and punctuated equilibrium have in common?
They are both explanations of the rate of evolutionary change
Whales have what seem like remnants of a pelvis and femur, as shown here.
https://media.edgenuity.com/evresources/3209-09-09/mc013-1.jpg
What are these structures an example of?
Vestigial structures
Wisdom teeth are the third and final set of human molars that come in during the late teens or early twenties. In some cases, these teeth come in without problems, but they often have to be removed due to misalignment in the jaw, as shown below. Removal of the teeth does not cause any long-term complications in regard to eating.
Which type of anatomic structure are wisdom teeth?
Vestigial
A scientist makes the argument that she has found DNA evidence that shows that evolution does not exist. What would her evidence have to show for her to be correct?
Weak genetic similarities in closely related organisms and strong genetic similarities in distantly related organisms
Studying the anatomy of different organisms allows scientists to determine how different species have evolved over time.
Which type of anatomic structure are bird wings and butterfly wings when compared to each other?
Analogous
What is the most likely reason that horses and mountain goats have hooves?
They have homologous structures because they have a common ancestor
Siblings have similar traits because they inherit those traits from a common ancestor. How is this similar to some evidence for evolution?
Similarities can be seen among related organisms, which shows common ancestry
Which structures are similar in function, but do not indicate that the organisms are related?
Analogous structures
What do scientists need to look at before developing an argument?
The validity of data, claims, hypotheses, and observations
Dogs have a reduced nonfunctional digit on their paws known as a dewclaw. What is this an example of?
Vestigial structure
Which of these statements best sums up evolution?
Change in a population through genetic variation over time
