Natural Selection and Speciation Quiz

Instructions

Answer each question using your understanding and big ideas from our work together.  The questions will ask you to APPLY your learning from our exploration to new situations and scenarios.

Item 1 - Stickleback Fish
Sticklebacks are small fish that can live in fresh and saltwater environments. They have thickened scales and spines as a defense against predators.

Figure 1 (below)
In this species of stickleback, some have a sharp pelvic spine (see Figure B illustrated in red) while others lack the pelvic spines altogether (see Figure E)

Figure 2: Evolution of Stickleback Fish
The data below illustrates the relative frequency of stickleback fossils with and without pelvic spines from an ancient lake bed in Wyoming over the span of 20,000 years.   This is one population with 2 variants (with and without pelvic spines).

You're doing awesome!   Make sure you read carefully and take your time. You've got this!

Item 2 - Colorado Potato Beetles
The process of natural selection can affect all organisms; many of the concepts we have been working on are also relevant and useful in the context of agriculture and growing food.

Pesticides play an important role in food production. They protect or increase the amount of a crop that can be grown and the number of times per year a crop can be grown on the same land. In addition, pests that kill plants, like the Colorado potato beetle, are becoming more and more resistant to different pesticides.

Figure 3: Proportion of Traits in a Colorado Potato Beetle Population
The graph below shows the percent of the Colorado potato beetle (a common agricultural pest) population having each of two versions of a heritable trait after three growing seasons where the same pesticide was applied to the crops each season. (Blue = Trait A; Orange = Trait B)

Item 3 - Selection in Beak Depth
Rosemary and Peter Grant performed a series of long-term studies on the finches living on the island of Daphne Major in the Galápagos Islands. With its short, blunt beak, the medium ground finch (Geospiza fortis) is adapted to picking up seeds from the ground. In 1976, seeds on the island were diverse and plentiful. However, during a drought in 1977, seeds became more scarce. Once the finches had eaten all the small and medium-sized seeds, they had to turn to larger, spiny seeds that were hard to crack open. The graph above shows the distribution of beak depths of the finch population before the drought (white bars) and after the drought (black bars).

Required

1

What type of selection has occurred in the finch population? (9L.3.2.1.5 standard 3)

Required

1

Suppose new data was collected and the beak depth now includes some birds with beak depth of 11.3 mm. What caused this new larger beak depth? (9L.2.1.1.2 standard 1)

Required

3

Using the data from the GRAPH explain how natural selection led to the adaptation of the population. (9L.3.2.1.5 standard 3)

Other Questions

Required

1

Which of these are in the correct order to model natural selection? (9L3.2.1.5 - standard 3)

Required

1

15. Which of the following is NOT an example of artificial selection? (9L.4.2.1.1 standard 6)

Required

1

Which of the following does NOT provide evidence that living things have been evolving for millions of years? (9L.4.2.1.1 standard 6)

Required

1

Which traits were favored at 5,000 years? (9L.2.1.1.2 - standard 1)

What would likely happen if variation for the full pelvis trait did not exist in the population of stickleback fish at point B on the graph? (9L.2.1.1.2 - standard 1)

Create a scenario to explain HOW the reduced pelvis and full pelvis sticklebacks could become two different species? (9L.4.1.1.3 - standard 5)

Which description could be a possible reason for the loss of the pelvic spine in the stickleback fish population over many generations (between points C and D on the graph)? (9L.2.1.1.2 standard 1)

Researchers have found stickleback fish in fresh and saltwater habitats. Describe the observations or tests you would perform to determine if the these fish are the same species or not. (9L4.1.1.3 - standard 5)

What pattern do you see in the data for trait A (blue) over time? (Cross Cutting Concept 1)

Which trait (A or B) is more likely to make the Colorado potato beetles resistant to the pesticide that is applied in future growing seasons? ( 9L.3.2.1.5 - standard 3)

Using the 3 "ingredients" for the "recipe" of Natural Selection, explain your answer to the previous question. (9L.3.2.1.4 - standard 2)

Which answer(s) could explain why the population of beetles with Trait A (blue) changed between 2015 and 2017? (9L.3.2.1.4 - standard 2)

Which method is the most likely explanation for the formation of another trait in the population of the Colorado potato beetle? ( 9L.2.1.1.2 - standard 1)

What type of selection has occurred in the finch population? (9L.3.2.1.5 standard 3)

Suppose new data was collected and the beak depth now includes some birds with beak depth of 11.3 mm. What caused this new larger beak depth? (9L.2.1.1.2 standard 1)

Using the data from the GRAPH explain how natural selection led to the adaptation of the population. (9L.3.2.1.5 standard 3)

Which of these are in the correct order to model natural selection? (9L3.2.1.5 - standard 3)

15. Which of the following is NOT an example of artificial selection? (9L.4.2.1.1 standard 6)

Which of the following does NOT provide evidence that living things have been evolving for millions of years? (9L.4.2.1.1 standard 6)

Which of the following is NOT an example of reproductive isolation. ( 9L.4.1.1.3 - standard 5)