Unit 2: Biodiversity

Question 1

DNA Evidence

Answer 1

Comparing DNA and amino acid sequences helps scientists see how closely related species are.

Question 2

What does DNA tell us?

Answer 2

Similar DNA sequences between different species suggest a common ancestor.

Question 3

What are fossils?

Answer 3

Preserved remains or traces of organisms from the past

Question 4

Where are fossils found?

Answer 4

They are found in sedimentary rock layers

Question 5

What do fossils show?

Answer 5

How species have changed over time

Question 6

What do fossil records provide?

Answer 6

They provide chronological patterns of change, showing transitions between ancient species and modern ones.

Question 7

What is Biogeography?

Answer 7

The study of where organisms live and how they got there

Question 8

What do patterns of distribution show?

Answer 8

Patterns of distribution show that species evolved differently in different environments.

Question 9

What do isolated environments have?

Answer 9

Isolated environments have unique species that evolved separately but show similarities to mainland species.

Question 10

What is common ancestry influenced by?

Answer 10

Common ancestry is influenced by geographical separation.

Question 11

What is embryology?

Answer 11

It is the study of how organisms develop before birth.

Question 12

Do early embryos of different species look similar?

Answer 12

Early embryos of different species look very similar, showing common structures.

Question 13

What do early embryos suggest?

Answer 13

The similarities within early embryos suggest that these species share a common ancestor.

Question 14

Homologous structures

Answer 14

Body parts that are similar in different species because they were inherited from a common ancestor.

Question 15

Example of a homologous structure

Answer 15

The bones in a human arm, a bat wing, and a whale flipper have different functions but similar structures, showing common ancestry.

Question 16

Why are homologous structures important?

Answer 16

They show how species have adapted structures for different uses over time while retaining a shared origin.

Question 17

Analogous structures

Answer 17

Body parts that perform similar functions in different species but are not inherited from a common ancestor.

Question 18

Example of an analogous structure

Answer 18

Wings of birds and insects.

Question 19

Why are analogous structures important?

Answer 19

Shows convergent evolution, where species evolve similar traits independently to adapt to similar environments.

Question 20

Vestigial structures

Answer 20

Body parts that have lost their original function through evolution

Question 21

Example of a vestigial structure

Answer 21

Human appendix, whale pelvic bone

Question 22

Why are vestigial structures important?

Answer 22

Evidence of changes over time and adaptation to new environments.

Question 23

Adaptive radiation

Answer 23

The rapid evolution of many new species that possess adaptations that allow them to fill previously empty ecological roles, or niches

A species evolves quickly to allow themselves to better the environment.

Question 24

Speciation

Answer 24

The formation of a new and unique species over the course of evolution

Question 25

Microevolution

Answer 25

Small-scale changes within a species (e.g., changes in gene frequency).

Question 26

When can microevolution be observed?

Answer 26

Microevolution can be observed over a short period, like the development of antibiotic resistance in bacteria.

Question 27

Macroevolution

Answer 27

Large-scale changes that occur over long periods and result in the formation of new species or major changes in body plans.

Question 28

What does macroevolution include?

Answer 28

the evolution of mammals from reptiles

Question 29

What type of life does microevolution involve?

Answer 29

Specific species

Question 30

What type of life does macroevolution involve?

Answer 30

All life