BIO 150 final exam

This is everything that was taught for the final except the comprehensive portion.

What is evolution?

Evolution is the change of genetic makeup in a population over time.

Does evolution occur at the individual level?

No, evolution does not occur at the individual level; it occurs at the population level.

What is a population in the context of evolution?

A population consists of individuals of the same species that share a common genetic background.

What is an example of adaptation in snowshoe hares?

Snowshoe hares turn white around the time of snowfall as an adaptation for camouflage.

What does it mean to be the fittest in terms of evolution?

Being the fittest means producing the most individuals with the advantageous genes that help in survival and reproduction.

Who presented the theory of evolution by natural selection?

Charles Darwin presented evidence that many modern organisms are descended from ancestral species that were different.

What ship did Charles Darwin sail on during his voyage?

Charles Darwin was on a ship called the Beagle during his voyage.

Where did Charles Darwin's voyage start?

Charles Darwin started his voyage in Europe.

What significant work did Darwin begin writing during his studies?

Charles Darwin began writing 'The Origin of Species' as he studied and questioned various organisms and their adaptations.

What is a famous quote by Charles Darwin regarding survival?

"It is not the strongest of the species that survives, nor the most intelligent that survives. It is the one that is most adaptable to change."

What is an adaptation?

An adaptation is a change in an organism that helps it survive and reproduce in its environment.

What can adaptations involve?

Adaptations can involve changes in behavior, structure, and physiology of an organism to become more suited to the environment.

What was Lamarck's theory regarding giraffes?

Lamarck thought that giraffes grew their necks longer as a result of stretching to reach higher food, and that this acquired trait was passed on to their offspring.

Mutation

Individual mutations occur so rarely that mutation alone usually does not change allele frequency much.

Gene flow

Individuals or gametes move from one population to another.

Non-random mating

A small percentage of individuals do all the mating.

Genetic drift

When a population gets isolated.

Selection

The only agent that produces adaptive evolutionary changes.

What is the bottleneck effect?

A sharp reduction in population size due to environmental events or human activities.

What caused the bottleneck effect in northern elephant seals?

Human hunting in the 1890s.

What happened to the northern elephant seal population after the bottleneck?

It increased to 30,000 seals with reduced genetic variation.

What is the founder effect?

When a new population is established by a small number of individuals, leading to reduced genetic diversity.

What is an example of the founder effect in humans?

The Amish community, founded by a small number of colonists.

What genetic trait is more frequent in the Amish community?

Polydactyly (extra toes or fingers).

Why has the Amish population remained genetically isolated?

Few outsiders become a part of the population.

What is Wallace known for?

Going home with many species.

What happened to the ship?

The ship is on fire.

What happened to the specimens?

All specimens are destroyed.

What happened to Wallace's notes?

All notes are gone with the fire.

What injuries did Wallace sustain?

His hands are bleeding from the rope.

What captivated Wallace?

He was captivated by butterflies.

How old was Charles Darwin when he sailed on the Beagle?

22 years old.

What did Darwin discover about fossils?

He discovered enormous fossils, but saw that living animals were similar, but smaller.

What was Darwin's opinion of the Galapagos Islands?

He hated the Galapagos Islands.

How could Darwin identify tortoises from different islands?

By the shell shape.

What did each mockingbird from the Galapagos Islands represent?

Each mockingbird came from a different island.

What was Wallace's thought process after returning to England?

He thought about how species can have different versions.

What analogy did Wallace use to describe species?

Species come from species, much like children come from parents.

What law of nature did Wallace form?

Species come from pre-existing species.

What factors did Wallace believe lead to evolution?

Massive death + massive variation = mutate and strengthen compared to the previous generation.

What is an example of directional selection?

The peppered moth can camouflage on certain tree bark.

When are peppered moths active?

Active at night.

What environmental change occurred at the beginning of the Industrial Revolution in England?

Coal burning produced soot that covered the countryside.

What is an example of stabilizing selection?

Human babies born with low birth weight are less likely to survive.

What difficulty do babies born to large mothers face?

They have difficulty being born.

What size of babies is selected in stabilizing selection?

Average-sized babies are selected.

What is disruptive selection?

A type of natural selection that favors extreme traits over average traits.

What happens to average-sized seeds during a major drought?

They disappear.

How does the disappearance of average-sized seeds affect birds?

It makes birds unable to eat.

What type of traits does disruptive selection favor?

Most rare traits.

Embryos

Show our evolutionary history and share features early in development, such as gill slits and a tail.

Vestigial structure

A structure that shows the species has evolved from something else.

Pelvic bones in whales

Weakly developed bones that resemble those of other mammals and have no apparent function.

Coccyx

Has lost its original function in assisting balance and mobility.

Appendix

A vestigial structure in humans with no significant function.

Wisdom teeth

Vestigial third molars that human ancestors used to help in grinding down plant tissue.

Species diversity

A measure of the different species in the same area

Species richness

# of different species

Species evenness

Abundance of individuals within each of those species

Endemic

One spot where that species exists

Conservation biology

Study of the preservation of biodiversity

What is a keystone species?

A plant or animal that plays a unique and crucial role in the way an ecosystem functions.

What happens to an ecosystem without keystone species?

The ecosystem would be dramatically different or cease to exist altogether.

What is biodiversity compared to?

Biodiversity is like a web.

What happened to populations of nutritious fish like ocean perch and herring?

They declined, likely due to overfishing, competition with pollock, or climate change.

What happened to sea lion and harbor seal populations in Alaska?

They declined drastically.

Why did killer whales turn to sea otters as a food source?

Due to the decline in their prey populations of sea lions and seals.

What is a potential consequence of declining fish populations in kelp forests?

It may lead to a decline in populations of eagles that feed on the fish.

What are the four primary causes of population decline?

Habitat change and loss, invasive species, pollution, overharvesting.

What do many scientists believe will become a greater factor in biodiversity loss in the future?

Global climate change.

What are extinctions that occur in a short amount of time called?

Spasms.

What is the current status of biodiversity on the planet?

There is a significant loss of biodiversity.

What is the slash and burn technique?

Cutting the forest down, putting it in piles, and burning it.

What is habitat fragmentation?

The process of dividing habitats into smaller, isolated sections.

What is a tension zone?

An area between two habitat types where each area is competing for survival.

What does the species diversity index (SDI) measure?

The diversity of species in a community.

What is episodic flooding?

Episodic flooding refers to temporary flooding events that occur occasionally, often due to specific weather conditions or land use practices.

What is a species diversity experiment?

A species diversity experiment is a scientific study conducted to assess the variety of species in a given ecosystem and how different factors affect this diversity.

Ecology

A branch of science that deals with the interrelationship between biotic and abiotic components of nature, as well as with the relationship among the individuals, population, and community of the biotic components.

Succession

The predictable way in which plants repopulate

Primary Succession

Starts with rock and slowly turns into an ecosystem. Takes millions of years.

Secondary Succession

Many areas where disturbances happen and come back predictably. Takes hundreds of years.

The Lost 40

Cut down every tree except for 40 acres because they didn't know who they belonged to.

Habitat

The environment in which an organism lives.

Niche

An organism's way of life within an ecosystem, including its habitat, food, predators, the organisms with which it competes, and how the organism affects and is affected by abiotic factors in its environment.

What is an ecotone?

An area in between two ecosystems.

What are the types of dispersion?

Random distribution, uniform distribution, clumped distribution.

What is the rarest form of dispersion?

Random distribution.

What do trophic levels indicate?

How energy is used in every ecosystem.

How many species are needed to form an ecosystem?

Hundreds of thousands.

What is a key component of every ecosystem?

Decomposers.

What are primary producers?

Decomposers that take millions to support others above them.

How did wolves get to Isle Royale?

Wolves went on an ice bridge to get to the island.

What is the longest predator-prey study known for?

It is known for having little human tampering.

What defines cold water ecosystems?

Ecosystems where streams and rivers stay cold in summer and never freeze in winter.

In which states are cold water ecosystems found?

Minnesota, Wisconsin, Iowa, and Illinois.

What is the driftless area?

An area with no glaciers.

What are the native trout species in Wisconsin?

Brook trout.

What are three threats to cold water ecosystems?

Poor land use, thermal loading, and mining/metal extraction.

What is thermal loading?

The increase in water temperature due to impervious surfaces.