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Multiple Choice Quiz
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1

Prior to the publication of Darwin's On the Origin of Species most people believed that species were created and unchanging over time
A)true
B)false
2

Darwin's God created species and left them forever unchanged.
A)true
B)false
3

Darwin was one of many scientists who proposed natural selection as the mechanism of evolution.
A)true
B)false
4

When the isolation experienced by the cichlid fishes ended another period of adaptive radiation occurred.
A)true
B)false
5

The huge number of niches available in Lake Victoria allowed adaptive radiation of cichlid fishes to take place.
A)true
B)false
6

Plagues, such as the Black Death of the 1400s, have a profound and lasting effect on the size of the human population.
A)true
B)false
7

The human population is growing at about 1.7% per year due to the differences in the birth and death rates.
A)true
B)false
8

Technological advances that have extended the average life span of humans have had a dramatic effect on the human population and have significantly reduced the death rate.
A)true
B)false
9

Fossil evidence studied by Darwin led him to believe in evolution because
A)it was obvious that simpler but similar organisms must have given rise to modern species.
B)God would not have left behind fossils if He did not want Darwin to discover evolution.
C)the fossils were exactly the same as extant species.
D)the fossil record was so complete.
E)so many other scientists believed in evolution as evidenced by the fossil record.
10

The writings of Charles Lyell had a great influence on Darwin because Lyell
A)wrote about natural selection as the mechanism of evolution in great detail.
B)believed species changed when God brought forth a great disaster and created new forms of life on the renewed Earth.
C)describe a world where species were constantly becoming extinct while new species evolved.
D)described several species of finches in which different types of beaks allowed them to occupy different niches.
E)felt that humans had no influence on the evolution of other species.
11

Which of the following helped convince Darwin in the evolution of species?
A)the fossil record
B)patterns of life he observed on the voyage of the Beagle
C)biblical writings
D)all of the above helped to convince Darwin in the evolution of species.
E)only a and b helped to convince Darwin in the evolution of species.
12

What was especially profound about the different beak types Darwin observed in his "finches" was that
A)they allowed each bird to successfully inhabit several niches on the island.
B)each beak type was seen on only one island.
C)the beak type changed over the life time of each bird.
D)this incredible diversity occurred in a closely related group of birds.
E)no other life form Darwin found on his journey showed such striking resemblance to mainland organisms.
13

The beak shape of Darwin's finches was influenced by the:
A)number of offspring produced in a given year.
B)carrying capacity of the environment.
C)response to the nature of the food supply.
D)effects of artificial selection by the island's inhabitants.
E)predators preying on a particular species of bird.
14

Beaks of the finches studied by the Grants changed in response to
A)the island on which the individual bird resides.
B)the amount of rainfall each year which in turn influences the type of seeds available.
C)clutch size produced by a pair of birds which varies significantly each season.
D)gender of the bird.
E)both a and c
15

Clusters of species evolved relatively recently from a common ancestor are an example of
A)adaptive radiation.
B)diverse radiation.
C)ecological selection.
D)artificial selection.
E)niche selection.
16

Diverse selective pressures on a group of organisms often lead to
A)extinction.
B)rapid speciation.
C)the ability to interbreed with another closely related species.
D)a splinter group moving to a new area.
E)both b and c.
17

The basis of the food chain is/are
A)the carnivores.
B)the sun.
C)the algae.
D)higher plants.
E)the decomposers.
18

Materials in an ecosystem are
A)recycled two or three times before they are exhausted.
B)available only to photosynthetic organisms.
C)passed back into the ecosystem when an organism dies.
D)limited to carbon compounds.
E)bound into inorganic molecules when an organism dies.
19

The carrying capacity of a population is determined by
A)the number of offspring an individual can have at one time (single births vs. litters).
B)available resources in the environment.
C)the number of times a year an individual reproduces.
D)the ability of the organism to successfully interbreed with other closely related species.
E)the proximity of the species to the equator (species closer to the equator produce a greater number of young each year).
20

An entomologist is studying a species of the flour beetle Tribolium. Although this beetle is a significant pest destroying millions of dollars of grains and grain products each year it naturally occurs in the wild. The researcher is trying to determine the number of beetles that are produced per acre each year. The beetles are common in Southern California (which is where the research is taking place) and they are dependent on sufficient quantities of water for successful development for their larval form. The beetles exhibit what type of life history strategy?
A)K-selected life history
B)unchecked exponential growth
C)Sigmoid growth
D)R-selected life history
E)none of the above
21

Which of the following is characteristic of k-selected life histories?
A)slow growth and maturation
B)single births (typically)
C)parental care extending for many years
D)long life span
E)all of the above
22

Darwin developed his theories on evolution by natural selection after observing
A)the feeding adaptations of the Galápagos finches.
B)fossils of extinct and living armadillos in South America.
C)similarities and differences in the Galápagos finches and South American finches.
D)differences in the reproductive success in a variety of organisms.
E)all of the above
23

A key point made by Thomas Malthus in his Essay on the Principles of Population was that
A)natural selection is the mechanism of evolution.
B)natural selection is more significant in wild animals than in domestic animals.
C)the carrying capacity of any population is limited by the available natural resources.
D)populations of species remain more or less stable in size.
E)reproductive success is high in live-bearing species.
24

A paleontologist who is dating a fossil using the carbon-14 method is measuring the
A)electron decay rate of the isotope.
B)length of time it takes for carbon-14 to obtain another proton in its nucleus.
C)half-life of the isotope.
D)time it takes for the isotope to decay to hydrogen.
E)none of the above
25

Evolution
A)has occurred only in the past 150 million years.
B)involves a progression of changes that took place over long periods of time.
C)occurs more often in plant species than in animals.
D)is no longer possible.
E)always results in species adapted for the current environment.
26

Carrying capacity is the number of
A)offspring that an individual can produce.
B)offspring that an individual can raise to maturity.
C)individuals that can be supported in a place indefinitely.
D)organisms that a carnivore consumes in its lifetime.
E)none of the above
27

When referring to the capacity of a population to grow, r equals the
A)number of new individuals in the population—the number of individuals leaving the population.
B)carrying capacity of the population.
C)population growth rate.
D)dispersal of the population.
E)reproductive potential of the population.
28

On his journey aboard the Beagle Darwin noted that parts of the world having similar climates, such as California, Chile, South Africa and Australia
A)exhibited remarkably similar plant and animal life illustrating the central role of climate over evolution.
B)had unrelated plants and animals illustrating that diversity is not entirely influenced by climate.
C)showed that human cultures could develop in almost identical ways in different parts of the world.
D)both a and c are true
E)none of the above are true
29

The variations in Galápagos tortoises Darwin saw could be distinguished based on
A)differences in the structures of their shells.
B)modifications of their beaks which allowed them to take advantage of different foods.
C)distinctive markings on the shells of their eggs.
D)the length of time their eggs required for incubation.
E)their size.
30

Darwin found that plant and animal species living on oceanic islands were most similar to species found
A)at the same latitude anywhere else in the world.
B)at the same elevation anywhere else in the world.
C)anywhere in the world having a similar climate.
D)on the nearest mainland.
E)on neighboring islands.
31

In his discussion of artificial selection Darwin noted that
A)species which had developed as a result of natural selection were hardier than those influenced by humans.
B)species which had developed as a result of natural selection showed more diversity than those influenced by humans.
C)domesticated species showed more diversity than wild species.
D)evolutionary change could not occur through artificial selection.
E)in all cases, artificially selected species were superior to wild species.
32

As energy moves through the food chain
A)much of it is lost to the next level.
B)it is concentrated and more is available to the next level.
C)the animal levels are more efficient in using energy than are plants.
D)it is efficiently recycled.
E)new levels are added to the food chain on a regular basis.
33

Raw materials such as carbon and nitrogen
A)can only be used by plants in their raw forms.
B)move through the food chain in a similar manner to energy.
C)are so plentiful that recycling is not necessary.
D)are more plentiful in some biomes than in others.
E)cycle between organisms and the physical environment.
34

The vast majority of the people who will be added to the world's population in the 1990s will live in
A)rural North America.
B)highly industrialized areas.
C)in developing nations.
D)China.
E)both b and d
35

When calculating the realized rate of population increase (r) reflects the number of
A)new births occurring in the population.
B)new births and immigrants in the population.
C)new births and immigrants minus the deaths in the population.
D)new births and immigrants minus the deaths and emigrations in the population.
E)none of the above
36

A population's growth rate rapidly slows as
A)changes in the environment take place.
B)the seasons change.
C)new diseases cause their numbers to stabilize.
D)the carrying capacity of their environment is approached.
E)evolution stops.





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