Name ___________________________________________ Period ___________
7th Grade Stand. 4 Obj. 1 and 2
Inheritance and Adaptations Study Guide
1. What is an inherited trait? Give an example. A trait that is passed on genes from
parents to offspring. Some examples are eye color, dimples, freckles, hair color.
2. What is an acquired trait? Give an example. A trait that you do not have at birth
and have to learn like piano, basketball, or you get like a scar.
3. How many parents are required for asexual reproduction? How does the offspring
compare to the parent (s)? 1 parent is involved in asexual reproduction and the
offspring is an exact copy of the parent.
4. How many parents are required for sexual reproduction? How does the offspring
compare to the parent (s)? Two parents are involved in sexual reproduction and the
offspring is a unique combination of the parents.
5. Put an A by the organisms that reproduce asexually and a S by the organisms that
reproduce using sexual reproduction, or a B if they can reproduce both ways:
Mouse ___s____
Bacteria __a_____
Fish __s___
Flower ____b__
Insects __b____
Plants _b____
6. What is meant by “structural trait”? Give 2 examples. Structural traits are
physical characteristics like 3 body parts, 8 legs, 2 arms, backbone.
7. What is an adaptation? An adaptation is a change that is made to help an organism
survive their environment.
8. Why are teeth shaped differently on different animals? What would happen if this
was not the case? Teeth are shaped to help animals get food, so a meat eater has
sharp teeth and a plant eater has broad, flat teeth. If the animal didn’t have
specialized teeth, it would have to adapt or it would not survive.
9. What is an adaptation to survive in the water? Some adaptations to survive in the
water include gills, fins, and the specialized eye coverings.
10. What advantage do humans have because we can walk on two legs? Humans can use
our hands since we only need 2 legs to walk around.
11. Would an organism that is found in several habitats be easily adaptable or hard to
adapt? Why? An organism that is found in several habitats is easily adaptable or it
would not be found so many places. For example bacteria exists everywhere.
12. How has science influenced life on a farm? Science has selectively bred animals to
produce more meat or milk, created disease resistant crops of corn and wheat
which have allowed farmers to produce more using less space.
13. What happens to a trait that helps an organism survive? The trait is passed to the
next generation.
14. Would it be better if a butterfly stands out from its environment or blends in?
Why? It is better is a butterfly blends into its environment so it does not stand
out to predators.
15. Why are some fruits or vegetables crossed together (i.e. broccoflower)? Fruits and
vegetables are crossed to enhance features we like and lose features we don’t like
so we will eat more fruits and vegetables.
16. What advantages would a bird have because of hollow bones? Hollow bones make
birds lighter so they can fly more easily.
17. What is homeostasis? Homeostasis is maintaining stable internal conditions like
sweating when it is too hot or getting chill bumps when it is too cold.
18. Why is some animal fur thicker in the winter than summer? Some animals grow
thicker fur in the winter so they can maintain their correct body temperature.
19. What is selective breeding? Selective breeding is selecting the most desired traits
to pass to the offspring and controlling the breeding.