Biology STAAR B.8C

A new predator of rabbits has been introduced within an ecosystem. This new predator runs faster than the native predators of rabbits. Which statement describes what will most likely occur in the rabbit population due to the introduction of the predator?

• The rabbits will mutate their genes and express genes that increase their speed

• Slower rabbits will develop stronger legs and pass this trait to their offspring.

• Rabbits will mate and produce offspring with a different species that has faster runners.

• Faster rabbits will survive and reproduce increasing the average speed of the rabbit population.

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Which answer choice best describes a community?

• Three-spined sticklebacks living in estuaries

• Different species of lizards occupying the same niche in a desert

• Roosting mother bats recognizing their offspring

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What would be the most likely effect of a wildfire that burned a large area of a forest?

• More sugars and starches would be available for animals in the area.

• The availability of fossil fuels for use by industries in the area would be reduced.

• Less carbon dioxide would be removed from the atmosphere in the area by plants.

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Which four body systems interact to allow a person to sneeze?

• Muscular, immune, nervous, respiratory

• Nervous, respiratory, circulatory, skeletal

• Respiratory, endocrine, skeletal, circulatory

• Lymphatic, skeletal, respiratory, muscular

Students are modeling mRNA during the process of protein synthesis. Which answer choice correctly describes the model of the mRNA strand being transcribed?

• The mRNA strand is complementary to the DNA template strand; however, uracil instead of adenine is paired with thymine.

• The mRNA strand is complementary to the DNA template strand; however, uracil instead of thymine is paired with adenine

A team of students encounters an unknown organism in a field while conducting a biodiversity study. Some students think the organism is a plant, while others think it is a fungus.

Which question should the students investigate to classify the organism correctly?

• Is there a cell wall around the cells of the organism?

• Does the organism perform photosynthesis?

• Is there nervous tissue present in the organism?

• Does the organism reproduce sexually?

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The San Marcos salamander, Eurycea nana, is a light reddish-brown translucent salamander about 2–5 cm in length. E. nana is found only in Spring Lake and a portion of the San Marcos River.

Which human activity would most likely decrease the ability of the salamanders to survive?

• Increasing water consumption that decreases the flow of clean water from the springs that feed the river

• Public transportation that reduces the number of automobiles that contribute to pollution runoff into the river

• The addition of a new food source into the river that limits competition for resources

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The aye-aye lemur is a mammal that feeds mostly on insect larvae that live inside trees. The aye-aye lemur has a specialized middle finger that is long and thin. The aye-aye lemur moves along a tree branch and taps the branch with its specialized finger.

Which selective pressure most likely resulted in the development of the aye-aye lemur’s special adaptation?

• Limited availability of water

• Competing for mates

• Large numbers of natural predators

• Food sources that are hard to find

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Gibberellins are hormones produced in the root tips of plants. The plant uses these hormones to stimulate the growth of shoots. How are gibberellins able to affect other parts of the plant?

• Gibberellins are absorbed through the stomata and attach to chloroplasts.

• Gibberellins are transported through vascular tissues to other parts of the plant.

The populations of which organisms will most likely increase as a result of a disease that suddenly reduced the population of Texas horned lizards?

• Grasses and ants

• Ants and grasshoppers

• Grasshoppers and Texas cottonmouths

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