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The differences among a species, like different bird beaks, are called

• genes.
• variations.
• traits.
• theories.

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A large herd of goats lives in a field full of poison ivy.  Some goats are able to eat the poison ivy while others have become sick when they eat it. Over time the herd as a whole will tend to

• Become more likely to eat poison ivy.
• Become less likely to eat poison ivy.
• Not change in the proportion of goats that can and can not eat poison ivy.
• Eat all the poison ivy and leave only plants all the goats can eat.

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These moths are all the same species. The differences between their wings is an example of ________________

• Natural Selection
• Variation
• Homeostasis
• Extinction

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The following are inherited traits of humans EXCEPT...

• long hair
• blue eyes
• long eyelashes
• small dimples

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Which term refers to physical characteristics that are studied in genetics

• traits

• offspring

• generations

• hybrids

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Which is the best example of an adaptation?

• Camouflage

• Chromosomes

• Albinism

• Freckles

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Adaptation

• Is a slight difference in an inherited trait of individual members of a species.

• Is an inherited trait that increases the organism’s chance of surviving and reproducing in its environment.

• A person who studies plants and animals by observing them.

• The resemblance of one species to another species.

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Harbor seals live in northern oceans and a have layer of blubber (fat) that keeps them warm. Seals can have blubber of different thicknesses.

Seals with thicker blubber are more likely to stay warm and survive in cold ocean waters. But, in warm ocean waters, thicker blubber can make the seals overheat and die.

The diagram below shows a population of seals that live in an area of ocean. At time 1, the population had the same number of seals with thin and thick blubber. At time 2, after many generations, there were many more seals with thick blubber and fewer seals with thin blubber in the population.

How did the environment change between time 1 and time 2? How did the population change?

• You cannot tell how the environment changed. With each generation, more seals passed on the gene for thick blubber to their offspring.

• The water became colder. Seals with thick blubber are more likely to survive, so the seals with thin blubber changed to have thick blubber.

• The water became colder. Seals with thick blubber are more likely to survive, so both kinds of seals passed on the gene for thick blubber to their offspring.

• The water became colder. With each generation, more seals with thick blubber survived long enough to pass on the gene for thick blubber to their offspring.

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Natural selection

• organisms better adapted to their environment tend to survive and produce more offspring

• process used by humans to develop new organisms with desirable characteristics

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The long and sharp beak of a woodpecker is an example of

• natural selection

• selective breeding

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