8B STAAR Practice

19 A student collected the animal shown below on a field trip. The student used a dichotomous key and a microscope to classify the animal. How should this animal be classified?

• Arthropoda

• Annelida

• Mollusca

• Platyhelminthes

11. Using a light microscope, a student identified the following characteristics of four organisms found in a sample of pond water.

Based on the observations of the student, which organisms most likely belong to the taxonomic group for bacteria?

• Organisms 1 and 2

• Organisms 3 and 4

• Organisms 1 and 4

• Organisms 2 and 3

Tags

8B

54. The diagram shows a dichotomous key and a picture of a fruit.

According to the key, the fruit comes from which species of tree?

• Fraxinus americana

• Fraxinus nigra

• Acer platanoides

• Acer negundo

Tags

8B

5 Frogs and toads belong to the order Anura. The smallest organism in this order is about 7 millimeters long, while the largest member is about 30 centimeters long. Which of these lists best describes this order?

• 
• 
• 
• 

Tags

8B

32 A cladogram is shown.

All the animals to the right of the hagfish would have the common characteristic of —

• fur

• claws or nails

• lungs

• jaws

Tags

8B

18 While visiting a national park, a student encounters an unfamiliar organism in a damp area near a body of water. The student notes that the organism is about 10 cm long, has four legs, and has a tail. The organism is black with small white spots on its smooth, moist skin. It also appears to have an internal skeletal system. To which class does the organism most likely belong?

• Reptilia

• Amphibia

• Mammalia

• Insecta

37 This dichotomous key can be used to identify some conifers.

Based on the key, which of these best describes the leaves and cones of the longleaf pine?

• Needle-like straight leaves that are mostly over 25 cm long and found in clusters of three; no thorns on cones

• Flattened and scale-like leaves that are mostly over 25 cm long; soft and leathery cones

• Needle-like straight leaves with a length of 25 cm that are mostly found in clusters of five; thorny cones

• Leaves with a length of 25 cm that are found in clusters of more than five; no thorns on cones

25 Simple leaves have a single leaf on a petiole, or stem, while compound leaves have more than one leaflet on a petiole. This unknown leaf can be identified using the dichotomous key.

Which tree does the unknown leaf come from?

• Ungnadia speciosa

• Sophora secundiflora

• Salix nigra

• Quercus laceyi

53 The classifications of four trees are shown in the table.

Which two trees are the most closely related?

• Taiwan beech and Taiwan catkin yew

• Taiwan catkin yew and lodgepole pine

• Lodgepole pine and Japanese maple

• Japanese maple and Taiwan beech

11. A student used a microscope to study four members of the phylum Ciliophora. Members of this phylum move when propelled by hundreds of tiny cilia.

Although these organisms belong to the same phylum, they are classified as different —

• families

• species

• kingdoms

• orders

Tags

8B