Evolution Test:
1. The diagram above shows the changes over time in the horse. Evidence for these changes
most likely came from —
a. carbon-dating
c. hypotheses of scientists
b. observations of modern horses
d. the fossil record _
2. Fossils are evidence of living things that were alive many, many years ago and often consist
of the skeletons of creatures imbedded in rock. Why don’t fossils contain the animal’s soft
tissues, as well?
a. Because the soft tissues decayed before the fossil could be formed
b. Because the rock breaks down soft tissues
c. Because the soft tissues were always eaten by scavengers
d. Because the rock always smashed the soft tissues flat
3. Changes in DNA are known as mutations and can sometimes produce beneficial changes in
populations. A mutant form of the normally light-colored peppered moth is dark colored.
The dark-colored moth blends in with soot-covered trees in heavily polluted areas. Why
would the dark-colored mutation be beneficial in a polluted area?
a. Dark-colored moths have a longer life span than light-colored moths.
b. Dark-colored moths can’t be seen well by predators.
c. Dark-colored moths taste bad to most of their predators.
d. Dark-colored moths produce more young than do light-colored moths.
4. Finches found on the isolated Galapagos Islands are different species with different beak
sizes and shapes, but are otherwise similar to a finch species found on the South American
mainland. What might be the cause of the differences in the development of the beaks of
these Galapagos finches?
a. The different types of food available on the islands
b. The original source of the finches
c. The differences in the types of nests the birds built
d. The type of predators found on the islands
5. A species is a group of similar organisms that
a. can mate with one another and produce fertile offspring.
b. can live together on an island.
c. can migrate to an island from the mainland.
d. all have exactly the same traits.
6. What did Darwin observe about finches in the Galapagos Islands?
a. Their feathers were adapted to match their environment.
b. Their beaks were adapted to match the foods they ate.
c. They had identical phenotypes in all locations.
d. They had identical genotypes in all locations.
7. The gradual change in a species over time is called
a. mutation
b. evolution.
c. migration.
d. variation.
8. A trait that helps an organism survive and reproduce is called a(n)
a. mutation.
b. selection.
c. adaptation.
d. variation.
9. What did Darwin infer from his observations of organisms in South America and the
Galapagos Islands?
a. The organisms on the Galapagos Islands were virtually identical to mainland organisms.
b. A small number of different plant and animal species had come to the mainland from the
Galapagos Islands.
c. The organisms on the Galapagos Islands were completely unrelated to mainland organisms.
d. A small number of different plant and animal species had come to the Galapagos Islands from
the mainland.
10. Which term refers to the process by which individuals that are better adapted to their
environment are more likely to survive and reproduce?
a. natural selection
b. overproduction
c. competition
d. variation
11. Which term refers to a species creating more offspring than can possibly survive?
a. natural selection
b. overproduction
c. evolution
d. variation
12. Differences between members of the same species are called
a. predators.
b. selections
c. traits.
d. variations.
A.
B.
C.
D.
13. How does natural selection lead to evolution?
Stronger offspring kill weaker members of the species.
Helpful traits accumulate among surviving members of the species.
Overproduction provides food for stronger members of the species.
Environmental changes kill weaker members of the species.
14.
A.
B.
C.
D.
What is the role of genes in evolution?
Only genes can be acted on by natural selection.
Parents with recessive genes die from overproduction.
The genes of most surviving parents have only dominant alleles.
Only traits that are controlled by genes can be acted on by natural selection.
15.
A.
B.
C.
D.
Which of these is one of the main ways that a new species forms?
Cross-breeding occurs within the species.
A group is separated from the rest of the species.
Competition occurs between members of the species.
Mutations occur in the alleles of members of the species.
16.
A.
B.
C.
D.
Which of these illustrates the impact of continental drift on the formation of new species?
Marsupial mammals adapt better in North America than in Australia.
Most mammals in Australia are marsupials, but few marsupials exist on other continents.
Australia has fewer marsupials than South America.
Placental mammals live mainly in Australia.
17.
A.
B.
C.
D.
What are fossils?
molds and casts of organisms that live today
drawings of ancient animals and other organisms
footprints or burrows of small animals that live today
the preserved remains or traces of organisms that lived in the past
18. How do most fossils form?
a. An insect becomes trapped in amber.
b. A dead organism becomes buried in sediment.
c. An entire organism becomes frozen in ice.
d. A dead organism becomes buried in tar.
19. How do scientists determine the actual age of fossils?
a. relative dating
b. absolute dating
c. sedimentary dating
d. mold and cast dating
20. To determine the actual age of a fossil, scientists use absolute dating. Absolute dating is done
using unstable radioactive elements.If the half-life of a radioactive element is 4 days, how long will
it take for three fourths of a sample of the element to decay?
a. 2 days
b. 4 days
c. 8 days
d. 16 days
21. What evidence is most important when using relative dating?
a. the half-life of a radioactive element
b. the position of sediment in petrified rock
c. the types of minerals in a petrified fossil
c. the position of fossils in sedimentary rock
layers
22. Most of what scientists know about extinct species is based on
a. sedimentary rock.
b. natural selection.
c. the fossil record.
d. variations.
23. Which term refers to a species that no longer has any living members?
a. molded
b. fossilized
c. extinct
d. petrified
24. ow long is Precambrian Time in the Geologic Time Scale?
a. 4 million years
b. 4.6 million years
c. 4 billion years
d. 4.6 billion years
25. What theory proposes that evolution occurs steadily in tiny changes over long periods of time?
a. gradualism
b. relative dating
c. natural selection
d. punctuated equilibria
26. What theory proposes that species evolve during short periods of rapid change?
a. gradualism
b. evolution
c. absolute dating
d. punctuated equilibria
27.
A.
B.
C.
D.
What evidence suggests that the ancestors of whales once walked on land?
Scientists have found fossils of whale-like creatures that walked on land.
Whales perform walking motions as they swim.
Whales have similar DNA to elephants.
Whales breathe through lungs.
28. Which term refers to similar structures that related species have inherited from a common
ancestor?
a. DNA sequences
b. developmental organisms
c. homologous structures
d. punctuated equilibria
29. If two organisms look very similar during their early stages, this is evidence that the organisms
a. are not related.
b. evolved from different ancestors.
c. have exactly the same DNA.
d. evolved from a common ancestor.
30.Why do scientists think related species have similar body structures and development patterns?
A. The species inherited many of the same genes from one another.
B. The species inherited many of the same proteins from a common ancestor.
C. The species inherited all of the same genes from a common ancestor.
D. The species inherited many of the same genes from a common ancestor.
31. Scientists combine evidence from fossils, body structures, early development, and DNA and
protein structures to
A. determine what bones an animal has in its forelimbs.
B. determine the evolutionary relationships among species.
C. decide which fossils are older than others.
D. determine whether an organism will have gills during its early development.