Evolution and Natural Selection Quiz

What was the primary reason for the change in color of the peppered moth population?

• Change in the moth's diet

• Introduction of a new predator

• Genetic mutation unrelated to the environment

• Pollution from the Industrial Revolution

How did industrial pollution affect the peppered moth population?

• Had no significant effect

• Increased the moth's lifespan

• Led to a change in the moth's coloration frequency

• Caused a decrease in moth population

What led to the increase in dark-colored peppered moths?

• A sudden genetic mutation

• Pollution darkening the trees

• Predation by birds

• A decrease in light-colored tree bark

Who is credited with the theory of natural selection?

• Isaac Newton

• Charles Darwin

• Gregor Mendel

• Albert Einstein

What was a key observation Darwin made about finches in the Galapagos Islands?

• Their ability to fly long distances

• Variations in beak shapes related to food sources

• Their mating rituals

• Their nesting behaviors

What inspired Darwin's concept of 'the struggle for existence'?

• His marriage to his first cousin

• His study of barnacles

• Thomas Malthus's work on population

• Observations of finch beaks

Which of the following is NOT a principle of natural selection?

• Survival of the fittest

• Inheritance of traits

• Equal resources for all offspring

• Variation within a population

Why is genetic variation important for natural selection?

• It stabilizes the population size

• It decreases the survival rate of a population

• It ensures all individuals are identical

• It provides a basis for selection

What does directional selection favor?

• Traits beneficial for reproduction only

• Traits at one extreme

• Intermediate traits

• Randomly chosen traits

Which type of selection results in the favoring of extreme traits at both ends of the spectrum?

• Stabilizing selection

• Sexual selection

• Directional selection

• Disruptive selection