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Mechanisms of Evolution Quiz

Total questions: 29

Worksheet time: 58mins

Name
Class
Date
1.

What does it mean for a population to be in Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium?

a)

The population is not evolving for at least some of its genes

b)

The population is not evolving and allele frequencies will stay the same across generations

c)

The population is evolving rapidly

d)

The population is not evolving for all of its genes

2.

What are the conditions required for a population to be in Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium?

a)

High mutation rate, non-random mating, gene flow, small population size, natural selection

b)

No mutation, random mating, gene flow, infinite population size, no natural selection

c)

High mutation rate, random mating, gene flow, large population size, natural selection

d)

No mutation, non-random mating, gene flow, small population size, natural selection

3.

What is the essence of Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium?

a)

A change in genotype frequencies in a population over time

b)

A change in allele frequencies in a population over time

c)

A state where allele and genotype frequencies change from one generation to the next

d)

A state where allele and genotype frequencies stay the same over generations

4.

What is the impact of mutation on allele frequencies from one generation to the next?

a)

Mutation has a small impact on allele frequencies

b)

Mutation has no impact on allele frequencies

c)

Mutation has a large impact on allele frequencies

d)

Mutation only impacts genotype frequencies

5.

What is non-random mating and its effect on allele frequencies?

a)

Non-random mating involves organisms mating randomly with each other

b)

Non-random mating involves organisms preferring to mate with others of the same genotype

c)

Non-random mating involves organisms preferring to mate with others of different genotypes

d)

Non-random mating has no effect on allele frequencies

6.

What is gene flow and its impact on allele frequencies?

a)

Gene flow involves the movement of genes out of a population and has a large impact on allele frequencies

b)

Gene flow involves the movement of genes into or out of a population and has no impact on allele frequencies

c)

Gene flow involves the movement of genes into or out of a population and can be a strong agent of evolution

d)

Gene flow involves the movement of genes into a population and has a small impact on allele frequencies

7.

What is genetic drift and its effect on allele frequencies?

a)

Genetic drift involves changes in allele frequency due to chance events and has a stronger effect on large populations

b)

Genetic drift involves changes in allele frequency due to chance events and has a stronger effect on small populations

c)

Genetic drift involves changes in genotype frequency due to chance events and has a stronger effect on small populations

d)

Genetic drift involves changes in genotype frequency due to chance events and has a stronger effect on large populations

8.

Why do population geneticists check for Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium?

a)

To determine if the population is in Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium for all of its genes

b)

To understand the impact of natural selection on allele frequencies

c)

To confirm that the population is evolving rapidly

d)

To identify if the population's allele and genotype frequencies are changing over generations

9.

Which mechanism of evolution refers to the changes in allele frequencies within a single population?

a)

Natural selection

b)

Genetic drift

c)

Mutations

d)

Gene flow

10.

What is natural selection?

a)

The process by which organisms that are most suited to their environment survive and reproduce most successfully

b)

The process by which organisms randomly change their genetic material

c)

The process by which organisms migrate to new populations

d)

The process by which organisms undergo genetic mutations

11.

Which of the following is an example of the bottleneck effect?

a)

A population of organisms experiencing a dramatic reduction in size, resulting in a change in allele frequency

b)

A small subgroup of a population migrating to a new area and changing allele frequencies

c)

Changes in the genetic material of a cell leading to new alleles in a population

d)

The movement of alleles from one population to another

12.

What is gene flow?

a)

The movement of alleles from one population to another

b)

The process of genetic material changing in a cell

c)

A random change in allele frequency caused by chance occurrences

d)

The change in allele frequencies following a reduction in population size

13.

Which mechanism of evolution involves the movement of alleles from one population to another?

a)

Natural selection

b)

Genetic drift

c)

Mutations

d)

Gene flow

14.

What is the founder effect?

a)

A change in allele frequencies as a result of the migration of a small subgroup of a population

b)

A random change in allele frequency caused by chance occurrences

c)

The change in allele frequencies following a reduction in population size

d)

The process of genetic material changing in a cell

15.

Which of the following is an example of the founder effect?

a)

A small group of butterflies migrating to a new area and creating a new population

b)

A population of organisms experiencing a dramatic reduction in size, resulting in a change in allele frequency

c)

Changes in the genetic material of a cell leading to new alleles in a population

d)

The movement of alleles from one population to another

16.

Reindeer from a rancher in Alaska escape from their pen during an enormous snow storm. After their escape, they mate with wild caribou that are migrating across the land. The offspring of these have traits for short legs and have tame behavior.

a)

Gene Flow

b)

Genetic Drift

c)

Non-Random Mating

d)

Natural Selection

17.

Males of the bighorn sheep species fight one another to show females who is the dominant male and are more likely to mate with females.

a)

Natural Selection

b)

Mutation

c)

Genetic Drift

d)

Non-Random Mating

18.

During a hurricane, a population of beetles almost gets completely wiped out. The only beetles that survived were lucky that they were in their nest at the time of the hurricane and had enough food to survive.

a)

Natural selection

b)

Genetic Drift

c)

Gene Flow

d)

Non-Random Mating

19.

Insects become resistant to pesticides very quickly, sometime in one generation. If an insect is resistant to the chemical, most of the offspring will also be resistant. Considering that insect generations can be a matter of weeks, insects in an area can become immune to a chemical within months.

a)

Mutation

b)

Natural Selection

c)

Genetic Drift

d)

Gene Flow

20.

A chemical spill causes the offspring of ladybugs to have blue dots instead of black dots.

a)

Natural Selection

b)

Genetic Drift

c)

Mutation

d)

Gene Flow

21.

A certain type of plant can produce blue or yellow flowers. During a fire, many yellow flowers are destroyed and now since blue is the dominant trait, the plant reproduces offspring that produce only blue flowers.

a)

Non-Random Mating

b)

Gene Flow

c)

Mutation

d)

Genetic Drift

22.

This is the process that ultimately creates new variations and changes in DNA; leads to the creation of new alleles

a)

Mutation

b)

Microevolution

c)

Natural selection

d)

Gene flow / genetic drift

23.

This makes an organism more suited to its environment

a)

species

b)

lifespan

c)

adaptation

d)

mutation

24.
Why is the mouse population changing over time?
a)

The light mice can reproduce more successfully than the dark mice

b)

The hawks eat more dark mice than light mice because the dark mice taste better

c)

The hawks eat more light mice than dark mice because they can see the light mice more easily

d)

The hawks eat more dark mice than light mice because they can see the dark mice more easily

25.
These moths are all the same species. The differences between their wings is an example of ________________
a)

Natural Selection

b)

Variation

c)

Homeostasis

d)

Extinction

26.

A drastic reduction in the size of a population that can change allele frequencies is called

a)

the bottleneck effect

b)

the founder effect

c)

the gene flow effect

d)

the Thanos effect

27.

The Amish have a higher frequency of polydactyly (extra fingers) in their community than the general population. This is due to the allele for extra fingers being present in the group that started the Amish community.

a)

The difference in allele frequency is due to genetic flow.

b)

The difference in allele frequency is due to the founder effect.

c)

The difference in allele frequency is due to a bottleneck.

d)

The difference in allele frequency is due to speciation.

28.
A  population of cockroaches was sprayed with an insecticide.  Some cockroaches survived and produced a population of cockroaches that was resistant to this spray.  What can BEST be inferred from this example?
a)
species will adapt no matter what the environment
b)
environment has no effect on the survival of an organism
c)
Individuals with favorable variations survive and reproduce
d)
Insecticides cause mutations that are passed on to the next generation
29.

Why is it important to finish ALL of an antibiotic, even if you feel better?

a)

If all of the infectious bacteria are not killed, the bacteria may continue to multiply. Some of these bacteria may have a mutation that makes them resistant to the antibiotic. This could cause resistant bacteria to spread.

b)

If all of the antibiotic is not used, the surviving bacteria may learn how to fight off the antibiotic, causing the sickness to get even worse.

c)

If all of the antibiotic is not used, the bacteria may begin ingesting your skin cells, causing a new sickness to arise.

d)

If all of the antibiotic is not used, the surviving bacteria may cooperate with other infectious bacteria, resulting in two separate infections at the same time.