Natural Selection Practice

A characteristic or trait that helps an organism survive in its environment is a/an ​ ​ (a)  

• adaptation
• skill
• variation
• natural instinct

Variation in​ (a)   would best help bison survive a harsh winter

• fur thickness
• Leg length
• Hearing quality
• Hoof size

Tags

NGSS.MS-LS4-4

Coloring or another physical characteristic that help an organism blend in with its environment

• mimicry
• camouflage
• hibernation
• migration

Base your answer(s) to question(s) on the diagram below and on your knowledge of biology. The diagram shows the heads of four different species of Galapagos Islands finches. 
The four different types of beaks shown are most likely the result of 

• gene manipulation 
• natural selection 
• unchanging environmental conditions 
• patterns of behavior learned from parents 

Tags

NGSS.MS-LS4-2

NGSS.MS-LS4-4

Which characteristic is necessary for natural selection to occur in a species? 

• stability 
• variation 
• complex cellular organization 
• a very low mutation rate 

Tags

NGSS.MS-LS3-2

NGSS.MS-LS4-4

What is the advantage of having different shaped beaks?

• To look different from other species.
• To be able to eat the food readily available in the environment.
• To protect itself against predators.
• To protect itself against prey.

Tags

NGSS.MS-LS2-1

Why are advantageous traits more likely to be passed onto offspring?

• Because they are more likely to survive and reproduce.
• Because they come from dominant alleles.
• Because they come from recessive alleles.
• Because the trait is an acquired phenotype.

Tags

NGSS.MS-LS4-4

Mutations are a change in what?

• DNA
• tRNA
• genotype
• phenotype

Tags

NGSS.MS-LS3-1

All of these finches have different shaped beaks, they are an adaptation to gain access of 

• Water
• Food
• Shelter

Tags

NGSS.MS-LS2-1

NGSS.MS-LS2-4

NGSS.MS-LS4-4

What do we call traits that increase an individual's chance to survive and reproduce?

• Maladaptations
• Sharp Teeth

• Variations
• Adaptations

Tags

NGSS.MS-LS4-4