Evolution Test

The forelimbs of a whale and an alligator have a similar structure, as shown below. Which of the following statements best explains this similarity in structure?

• The whale and the alligator evolved at the same time.

• The whale and the alligator have a recent common ancestor.

• The whale and the alligator spend all of their time in the water.

• The whale and the alligator have the same method of locomotion.

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NGSS.MS-LS4-2

Populations of a European salamander, Proteus anguinus, live in underground caves that have a limited food supply. One of the salamander’s adaptations is the ability to significantly reduce its rate of metabolism when food is scarce. Which of the following statements best describes how the process of natural selection led to this adaptation?

• Salamanders with the ability to slow their metabolism grew more slowly than other salamanders.

• Salamanders with the ability to slow their metabolism were more likely to emigrate (leave a population) than other salamanders.

• Salamanders with the ability to slow their metabolism underwent more rapid mutation than other salamanders.

• Salamanders with the ability to slow their metabolism were more likely to survive and reproduce than other salamanders.

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NGSS.MS-LS2-1

NGSS.MS-LS4-4

Which of the following statements best explains why cactus plants evolved to have these traits?

• The genes of individual cactus plants mutated to develop these traits.

• Individual cactus plants developed these traits to fill an environmental niche.

• Cactus plants with these traits were better able than other cactus plants to interbreed with invasive species.

• Cactus plants with these traits were better able than other cactus plants to survive and pass these traits on to their offspring.

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NGSS.MS-LS4-4

Fossil evidence shows that ancient aquatic reptiles called ichthyosaurs looked very similar to modern dolphins. However, ichthyosaurs and dolphins are not closely related animals. Which of the following statements best explains the similar appearance of ichthyosaurs and dolphins?

• Dolphins reproduce using gametes, and so did ichthyosaurs.

• Dolphins are eukaryotic organisms, and so were ichthyosaurs.

• Dolphins have the same number of chromosomes that ichthyosaurs had.

• Dolphins are adapted to the same types of environments that ichthyosaurs lived in.

Tags

NGSS.MS-LS4-1

NGSS.MS-LS4-2

Millions of years ago, seawater flooded part of the Mississippi River Valley. Scientists have concluded that chorus frogs were affected by the flooding. The flooded areas formed geographic barriers between chorus frog populations for millions of years. Which of the following most likely occurred as a result of the seawater flooding?

• The frogs lost the tadpole stage of their life cycle.

• Isolated populations of frogs became separate species.

• The frogs’ eggs were fertilized by sperm of marine species.

• Frog populations were protected from all the predators in their areas.

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NGSS.MS-LS4-2

Which condition is essential for natural selection to occur?

• Unlimited resources

• An inherited variation

• A stable (unchanging) environment

• A long life span

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NGSS.MS-LS4-4

In 1915, a disease killed almost all the oysters in a Canadian bay. The few oysters that survived reestablished the population. By 1940, the disease-causing organism was still present in the bay, but the size of the oyster population was equal to what it was before 1915. Which of the following statements describes what most likely occurred in the oyster population between 1915 and 1940?

• The oysters that survived in 1915 bred with other species, so the offspring could not be infected by the disease anymore.

• The oysters that survived in 1915 had offspring that learned to fight the disease, so disease rates in the oyster population were lower.

• The oysters that survived in 1915 had resistance to the disease, so the proportion of resistant oysters in the population increased by natural selection.

• The oysters that survived in 1915 mutated to reproduce more quickly, so the reproductive rate exceeded the disease rate in the oyster population.

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NGSS.MS-LS4-4

Which of the following conclusions is best supported by this data?

• Snakes are more closely related to silk moths than to chickens.

• Chickens and snakes evolved more recently than horses or whales.

• Whales and penguins evolved more recently than any of the other organisms.

• Horses and whales are more closely related to each other than the other pairs of organisms are.

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NGSS.MS-LS4-2

A mouse population lives in an area with tan-colored soil. The number of mice with tan coats and the number of mice with dark gray coats were about equal at one time. Five years later, the number of mice with tan coats was significantly greater than the number of mice with dark gray coats. Which of the following events most likely caused the changes in the coat color distribution in the population?

• the immigration of a new rodent species

• an increase in the birth rate for the mouse population

• an increase in the amount of leaf litter decomposed in the soil

• the introduction of a predatory bird that finds its prey by sight

Tags

NGSS.MS-LS2-4

NGSS.MS-LS4-4

Sperm whales have vestigial hip bones, and a small percentage of sperm whales also have vestigial hind limbs. Which of the following statements best explains the presence of these vestigial structures in sperm whales?

• Sperm whales evolved from ancestors that walked on land.

• Sperm whales are in the process of evolving into land mammals.

• These structures are acquired by each individual sperm whale during its lifetime.

• These structures resulted from sperm whales having a long period of embryonic development.

Tags

NGSS.MS-LS4-2