Natural Selection Review

What do you call a trait or behavior that helps an organism survive in its environment?

• adaptation

• fitness regulator

• detriment

• gene

Answer explanation

Adaptations help organisms survive. For example, warm fur to help polar bears survive in the cold.

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Match the following adaptations to their environments.

• Arctic (cold)

• Plants with thick trunks that can store water

• Desert (dry)

• Thick blubber for warmth

• Temperate forest (hot summers, cold winters)

• Ability to store food and find it later

• Grassland (wide open space)

• Oily feathers that repel water

• Tropical rainforest (hot & wet)

• Fast speed to escape predators

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Whether a trait is good or bad depends on the ​ (a)   . For example, thick warm fur would be a really good thing in the ​ (b)   , but it would be a bad thing in the ​ (c)   .

• environment
• cold arctic
• hot tropical rainforest
• age of the organism

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What determines the characteristics of an organism?

• diet

• carbohydrates

• genetic material

• age

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Organisms with better traits are more likely to survive and reproduce. They pass on their DNA to their offspring. What does this increase?

• biological fitness

• genetic diversity

• survivorship of the great-grandparents

• amount of camouflage

Answer explanation

Biological fitness refers to the number of offspring that an organism can produce.

Higher biological fitness = passed on more DNA

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Over time due to natural selection, beneficial traits become ​ (a)   common, while harmful traits become ​ (b)   common.

• more
• less
• equally

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Peppered moths come in two phenotypes - dark and light. Birds eat the moths that they can see more easily. If the trees where the moths live are dark colored, what will happen to the moths? (Select all that apply)

• The number of dark moths will increase

• The number of dark moths will decrease

• The number of light moths will increase

• The number of light moths will decrease

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Baby sea turtles have many predators. When they hatch, the run from the beach to the water. Some sea turtles are faster than others. If the slower sea turtles are more likely to be eaten by predators what will happen?

• The average speed of sea turtles will increase over time

• The average speed of sea turtles will decrease over time

• The faster sea turtles will get sick and die

• The predators will start eating different food

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Crickets "sing" to communicate with each other, but frogs eat crickets and are more likely to find them if they are loud. Over time, the number of loud crickets will ​ (a)   and the number of quiet crickets will ​ (b)   .

• decrease
• increase

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Match the following adaptations to their pictures:

• Mimicry

• 
• Defensive spines

• 
• Camouflage

• 
• Warmth

• 
• Poison

• 

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