Name ______________________________ Class ___________________ Date __________________
Section 1: Early Ideas About Evolution
Study Guide A
KEY CONCEPT
There were theories of biological and geologic change before Darwin.
VOCABULARY
evolution
fossil
gradualism
species
catastrophism
uniformitarianism
MAIN IDEA: Early scientists proposed ideas about evolution.
Match each scientist with the statement that best reflects his ideas about
evolutionary theory.
1. Linnaeus
a. Species don’t become extinct but instead
evolve into different forms in response to
changes in the environment.
2. Lamarck
b. More complex forms of life evolved from
less complex forms.
3. Darwin (Erasmus)
c. Earth is much older than previously
thought.
4. Buffon
d. Organisms can be classified according to
their similarities.
Choose the best answer for the statement or question.
5. To be considered members of the same species, organisms must be able to
a. look alike.
b. reproduce together and have fertile offspring.
c. live in the same habitat.
d. eat the same types of food.
6. What is incorrect about Lamarck’s theory of how organisms evolve?
a. He did not explain how traits were passed on to offspring.
b. He did not explain why an animal would need to develop new traits.
c. He did not explain why changes in the environment caused an organism’s
behavior to change.
d. He did not explain how competition might help animals to develop traits.
© Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company
Holt McDougal Biology
1
Principles of Evolution
Name ______________________________ Class ___________________ Date __________________
Study Guide A continued
7. Which scientist developed a system for classifying organisms that is still
used today?
a. Carolus Linnaeus
b. Georges Louis LeClerc de Buffon
c. Erasmus Darwin
d. Jean-Baptiste Lamarck
MAIN IDEA: Theories of geologic change set the stage for Darwin’s theory.
catastrophism
gradualism
uniformitarianism
8. Write the names of the theories next to their descriptions.
Geologic Theory
Description
The idea that changes on Earth occurred by small steps
over long periods of time
The idea that geologic processes add up over long periods
of time to produce great change
The idea that volcanoes, floods, earthquakes, and other
such events caused mass extinctions and the formation of
all landforms
Vocabulary Check
Fill in the blank with the word or phrase that best completes the sentence.
9. A trace of an organism that existed in the past is called a
__________________________.
10. __________________________ is the process of biological change by which
descendants come to differ from their ancestors.
11. Events such as volcanoes, floods, and earthquakes are the basis of
___________________________________.
12. ____________________________ can be summarized by the phrase “the
present is the key to the past.”
© Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company
Holt McDougal Biology
2
Principles of Evolution
Name ______________________________ Class ___________________ Date __________________
Study Guide A continued
Who’s Who?
Linnaeus
Lamarck
Buffon
E. Darwin
_________________ 13. Charles Darwin’s poetic grandfather
_________________ 14. Thought that a giraffe’s long neck evolved from
reaching high in trees
_________________ 15. Grouped living organisms into categories based
on what they looked like
_________________ 16. Wrote Histoire Naturelle (Natural History) in 1749
© Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company
Holt McDougal Biology
3
Principles of Evolution