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2018 STAAR Biology

By Huntsville ISD
Last updated almost 3 years ago
54 Questions
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The results shown in the picture were obtained using a technique known as gel electrophoresis. This technique separates mixtures of DNA. In the picture nine different samples of DNA are compared.

Gel electrophoresis can be used to —

The diagram illustrates the activity of vesicles during a cellular process.

Which statement best explains the function of the vesicles?

The graphs show the reaction rate for an enzyme across a range of temperatures and pH.

Based on these data, this enzyme functions best at what temperature and pH?

The Indian leaf butterfly has traits that allow it to resemble a leaf. The bright colors of the monarch butterfly indicate that the butterfly tastes bad and can be poisonous.

How does the appearance of these butterflies help them to survive?

The female reproductive and endocrine systems work interactively for which main purpose?

Scientists can determine relatedness among organisms by comparing partial amino acid sequences. The table shows four partial amino acid sequences from four organisms.

Which organism is the LEAST related to the other three organisms?

In the 1880s, Louis Pasteur developed a method of weakening viruses. The weakened viruses could be injected into healthy individuals.

How is this method effective in fighting viral diseases?

In humans blood type is determined by the A, B, and O alleles. The A and B alleles are codominant to each other and dominant over the O allele. An individual with the AO genotype and an individual with the BO genotype can produce offspring with which of the following phenotypes?

Which of these best demonstrates mutualism between certain types of bacteria and humans?

What is the role of mRNA in expressing specialized structures?

A student used a microscope to study four members of the phylum Ciliophora. Members of this phylum move when propelled by hundreds of tiny cilia.


Although these organisms belong to the same phylum, they are classified as different —

A mutation in which types of cells would only affect the organism and not future generations?

In the mid-1980s an aggressive strain of algae known as Caulerpa was accidentally introduced into the Mediterranean Sea when a seaside aquarium cleaned out its tanks. The algae contains a toxin that prevents native herbivores from consuming it. Caulerpa quickly spread over the sea floor, crowding out many species including sponges, corals, sea fans, and lobsters.

Which statement explains the most likely impact Caulerpa has had on the biodiversity in the Mediterranean Sea?

A sequence of a DNA template strand is shown.


Which of these is the correct amino acid chain produced from the DNA template strand?

Plant roots have extensions called root hairs. These root hairs are important in the homeostasis of the plant.


Which statement best explains the importance of the root hairs to the stems and leaves of the plant?

The Himalayan rabbit’s habitat has cold, snowy winters and mild summers. The body is typically covered in white fur except for the nose, feet, tail, and ears, which are covered in black fur.

A scientist shaved an area of white fur on the back of a Himalayan rabbit and placed an ice pack over the shaved area. The shaved area grew black fur.

Which of these best explains why the hair that grew back where the ice pack was placed was black and not white?

A small town in the piney woods of East Texas has a soccer field composed of native grasses. The soccer field is mowed once a week.

What effect does continual mowing have on the ecology of the field?

Which list correctly identifies characteristics that protists share with animals?

The activities in the cell cycle occur during specific phases. In which phase of the cell cycle is DNA replicated?

The table lists some organisms found in a swamp ecosystem and their sources of energy.

When constructing an energy pyramid of the swamp ecosystem, which of these would be placed at the top of the pyramid?

The white cattail is a hybrid species of plant that is a result of the cross between the broad-leaved cattail and the narrow-leaved cattail. Over time, the white cattail has established itself in the wetlands of Midwestern states.

Which of these explains the success of the white cattail?

An individual who participates in a long-distance run on a hot day will produce large quantities of sweat. As a result of the excessive sweating, the amount of urine produced by the kidneys will change.

How will the kidneys respond to help the individual’s body maintain homeostasis?

The gray squirrel, Eastern fox squirrel, and red squirrel are all different species of squirrels. Why is having a scientific name for each species of an organism important?

Students are given data from an investigation that identified some of the chemical elements present in four different samples

Which sample was most likely DNA?

Saprophytes are fungi that feed on dead and decomposing organisms. They secrete enzymes that digest components of cell walls, such as cellulose and lignin.

Which statement explains why these fungi are an important part of the biogeochemical cycle?

An advertisement for a health supplement for dogs claims to build lean muscle and strengthen tendons and ligaments, as well as provide energy. Which two biomolecules must the supplement contain to provide these benefits?

Scientists have observed many types of tropical fish moving beyond their traditional ocean ranges into waters that have historically been more temperate. These fish compete for food with native fish, consuming much from the kelp forests and beds of sea grass.

The expansion of the ranges of tropical fish was most likely caused by —

The diagram shows light- and dark-colored beetles that live on a tree.

Which result is most likely to occur to the beetle population due to predation over time?

In cattle the allele for cloven hooves (H) is dominant over the allele for mule-foot hooves (h). The phenotype for each trait is shown in this picture.


What is the probability of cloven hooves in the offspring of parents that are heterozygous for the trait?

A corn plant produces both male and female flowers. The male flower forms the tassel and the female flower forms the ear of corn. The silks that emerge from the ear are the stigma of the female flower. Each silk leads to an ovule that can become a corn seed.


Which of these must happen for corn seeds to develop on the ear?

Adaptations that result from natural selection are expected to increase the fitness of an organism. In terms of natural selection, which of the following best describes fitness?

In the early 1900s, Thomas Hunt Morgan was among the first scientists to contribute to the chromosome theory of heredity. Morgan’s investigations into heredity in fruit flies led him to propose that the event represented in the diagram sometimes occurs.


Which statement about the event represented in the diagram is valid?

The human body is composed of organ systems. Which list represents a system organized from least to most complex?

Some components of cells are listed.

Which of the components could be observed using a microscope in a prepared slide of leaf epidermal cells but not in a prepared slide of human cheek cells?

Niles Eldredge and Stephen Jay Gould researched the lenses of the eyes of fossil trilobites of different species. In 1972 they published a paper in which they described the tendency of a species to remain the same until a sudden change in the environment causes a new related species to appear.

Which hypothesis was most challenged by the work of Eldredge and Gould?

Which part of a DNA molecule is responsible for the direct coding of specific traits in an organism?

When mammals get an infection, their internal body temperature often rises 2 to 3 degrees Celsius. The body gets the energy it needs to react to an infection by —

Scientists use zebra fish to study human genetic diseases because zebra fish and humans share many of the same genetic diseases.

Which statement describes why zebra fish experience similar genetic diseases as humans?

How do the circulatory system and immune system work together to respond to an injury?

A student groups different types of cells as shown.

Which table headings should the student use for the two groups?

Enchanted Rock State Natural Area is located in Central Texas. Enchanted Rock is a dome of granite. The area contains four easily identifiable communities. The table describes characteristics of each type of community in the area.

A student studying primary succession should focus on which of these communities?

The relationships among different orders of millipedes are shown in the cladogram.
Based on this cladogram, which statement best describes relationships among millipede orders?

Two biomolecules are shown.


Which of the following best describes these biomolecules?

In North American forests, two species of birds, nuthatches and brown creepers, forage on the same trees for insects. Brown creepers feed on insects found near the bottom of the tree trunk, while nuthatches feed on insects in the top part of the tree.
The difference in foraging behavior most likely affects the nuthatches and brown creepers by —

Fruits grown in hot climates are usually less sweet than those grown in cooler temperatures. The high temperatures increase the rate of respiration in the plants, thus reducing the sugar content in some fruits.

Why does increased respiration in the leaves and stems reduce the sugar content in the fruits of a plant?

This model of the cell cycle includes two arrows that each represent a process in the cycle.

What do the two arrows represent?

Which statement explains how producers are dependent upon consumers for their survival?

Which of these describes a difference between viruses and cells?

As part of the nitrogen cycle, animals acquire some amino acids by doing which of the following?

Which two body systems must directly interact for vertebrate organisms to exchange gases?

The image shows part of the humerus bone in different genera of primates.

Which statement is best supported by the observable structures of the different humerus bones?

A certain mutation in the gene for hemoglobin results in the red blood cells becoming sticky, rigid, and irregularly shaped. These irregularly shaped red blood cells block the flow of blood throughout the body. A single base mutation is responsible for these irregularly shaped blood cells.

Which of these mutations most likely results in the mutated hemoglobin gene?

A partial meadow food web is shown.

Based on this food web, which organisms are direct sources of energy for secondary consumers?

The diagrams show some of the levels of biological organization.


In what order are the levels in the diagrams?