7 Patterns of Evolution

Birds, bats, and butterflies have wings that allow them to fly; however, they are all different species and do not share a common ancestor.

• speciation               

• convergent evolution                   

• divergent evolution                   

• extinction

A plant species called the bull-thorn acacia and a species of stinging ant have a symbiotic relationship. The acacia plant has large hollow thorns in which the ants live. The ants also feed on the plant’s nectar. These ants protect the plant by stinging small animals that try to eat the plant’s leaves. The hollow thorns and nectar production of the acacia and the stinging of the ants evolved due to the relationship between the species.

• extinction           

• coevolution                       

• punctuated equilibrium                        

• gradualism

The dodo was a large, flightless bird. It only lived on one island in the Indian Ocean. When sailors arrived in the sixteenth century, they found that the dodo was very easy to catch, and even though it didn't taste very nice, many were eaten.
The dodo's natural habitat was almost completely destroyed after people started settling on Mauritius. And when pigs, cats, and monkeys were introduced, they added to the problem by eating the dodo and its eggs. The last confirmed sighting of a dodo was in 1681 and by the end of the 17th century there were no dodos left.

• convergent evolution                   

• divergent evolution                   

• extinction   

• coevolution

Fossil evidence suggests that whales evolved from land mammals. This was a slow process spanning thousands of years that resulted from the continual reduction of the mammal’s forelimbs over time, until they were reduced to fins.

• speciation

• extinction 

• coevolution    

• gradualism

The dog, Canis familiaris, is a direct descendent of the gray wolf, Canis lupus. In other words, dogs as we know them are domesticated wolves. It was more than just a behavioral change; domestic dogs are different in form from wolves, mainly smaller and with shorter muzzles and smaller teeth. 

• convergent evolution                   

• divergent evolution                   

• extinction           

• coevolution                       

Horses are thought to have evolved in North America from dog-sized herbivores. Horse evolution shows long stable periods of little evolution interrupted by brief periods of rapid change.

•  gradualism

• punctuated equilibrium                        

• coevolution

• extinction

In Africa’s Lake Victoria, a population of cichlid fish were isolated over 3000 years ago. Since then, over 700 new species have emerged, distinguished by their unique coloring and mating rituals

• speciation               

• gradualism

• punctuated equilibrium                        

• convergent evolution                   

Which of these describes a species that has become extinct?

• fewer members of the species are dying than being born
• more members of the species are dying than being born
• very few members of a species are alive
• all members of a species have died

The Florida panther is a large cat related to lions. Panthers eat deer, rodents, and farmers' livestock. Panthers once lived in Tennessee. Which of these most likely caused panthers to disappear from Tennessee?

• Panthers in Tennessee were unable to reproduce.
• People hunted panthers and destroyed their habitats.
• Natural predators killed and ate all the panthers in Tennessee.
• Panthers in Tennessee ran out of food. 

What is a mass extinction?

• When all the species in a particular area on earth suddenly go extinct
• When multiple species from all over the earth suddenly go extinct 
• When one species goes extinct due to habitat changes
• When all life on earth is wiped out