Biology · Science General

Evolution and Biological Adaptation

1,354 Questions

Evolution and biological adaptation focus on natural selection, speciation events, and how organisms adjust to environmental changes over time. These foundational biology concepts appear frequently in general science sections of civil services and school board examinations. Use these questions to study evolutionary theories, ancestral traits, and the fossil record.

Natural selection mechanismsSpeciation event examplesBiological adaptation traitsPanspermia hypothesis conceptsFossil record analysisMate selection theories

Evolution and Biological Adaptation Questions

Multiple choice biology concept of life theories of the origin of life origin of life the origin of cells and cell division

Most of the history of life concerns the evolution of

  1. Prokaryotes

  2. Photosynthesizers

  3. Plants and animals

  4. Eukaryotes
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
A,D Correct answer
Explanation

  • Cells are divided into two main classes, initially defined by whether they contain a nucleus. 
  • Prokaryotic cells (bacteria) lack a nuclear envelope. 
  • Prokaryotic cells are generally smaller and simpler than eukaryotic cells; in addition to the absence of a nucleus, their genomes are less complex and they do not contain cytoplasmic organelles or a cytoskeleton. 
  • Phospholipids are the basic components of all present-day biological membranes, including the plasma membranes of both prokaryotic and eukaryotic cells. 
  • The key characteristic of the phospholipids that form membranes is that they are amphipathic molecules, meaning that one portion of the molecule is soluble in water and another portion is not.
So the correct option is 'prokaryotes and eukaryotes'.

Multiple choice biology selection and evolution theory of natural selection natural selection evidence for evolution

The evidence of evolution is based on

  1. Paleontology

  2. Embryology

  3. Anatomically

  4. All of the above
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
D Correct answer
Explanation

Evidence for evolution is gathered from multiple scientific fields. Paleontology provides fossil records, embryology shows developmental similarities, and anatomy (comparative anatomy) reveals homologous structures, all supporting the theory of evolution.

Multiple choice biology selection and evolution theory of natural selection natural selection evidence for evolution

Origin of life is due to

  1. Spontaneous generation

  2. God's will

  3. Effect of sun rays on mud

  4. Chemical evolution
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
D Correct answer
Explanation
Chemical evolution describes chemical changes on the primitive Earth that gave rise to the first forms of life. The first living things on Earth were prokaryotes with a type of cell similar to present-day bacteria. Prokaryote fossils have been found in 3.4-million-year-old rock in the southern part of Africa, and in even older rocks in Australia, including some that appear to be photosynthetic. All forms of life are theorized to have evolved from the original prokaryotes, probably 3.5-4.0 billion years ago.
The chemical and physical conditions of the primitive Earth are invoked to explain the origin of life, which was preceded by chemical evolution of organic chemicals. Astronomers believe that 20-30 billion years ago, all matter was concentrated in a single mass, and that it blew apart with a "big bang." In time, a disk-shaped cloud of dust condensed and formed the Sun, and the peripheral matter formed its planets. Heat produced by compaction, radiation, and impacting meteorites melted Earth. Then, as the planet cooled, Earth's layers formed. The first atmosphere was made up of hot hydrogen gas, too light to be held by Earth's gravity. Water vapor, carbon monoxide, carbon dioxide, nitrogen, and methane replaced the hydrogen atmosphere. As Earth cooled, water vapor condensed and torrential rains filled up its basins, thereby forming the seas. Also present were lightning, volcanic activity, and ultraviolet radiation. It was in this setting that life began
So, the correct answer is 'Chemical evolution'

Multiple choice biology selection and evolution theory of natural selection natural selection evidence for evolution
Relative method and carbon dating are the methods to know about evolution.

  1. True

  2. False
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
A Correct answer
Explanation

Evolution is the gradual change in the traits in order to adjust to the changing environmental conditions. Relative dating helps in evolution to detect the relative order of past events in comparison to other organisms. Similarly, carbon dating is used to know the age of the fossils on the basis of which evolutionary relationship is determined. It also helped to study the origin of life. So, the given statement is true.

Multiple choice biology selection and evolution theory of natural selection natural selection evidence for evolution

The best explanation for origin of life comes from 

  1. Pangenesis

  2. Spontaneous generation

  3. Panspermia

  4. Chemical evolution theory
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
D Correct answer
Explanation

The chemical evolution theory, or Oparin-Haldane hypothesis, proposes that life originated from non-living chemical substances through a series of reactions in the early Earth's atmosphere. This is the widely accepted scientific explanation for the origin of life.

Multiple choice biology selection and evolution theory of natural selection natural selection evidence for evolution

Reasons for origin of new species include

  1. Mutation

  2. Continental drift

  3. Natural calamities

  4. All of the above
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
D Correct answer
Explanation
  • There are different reasons for the origin of s=new species from older ones. 
  • One of these reasons is the development of random and sudden mutations. Mutations are nothing but changes that occur in DNA sequences. Certain environmental factors cause mutations. Thus, change in DNA sequence leads to the generation of a species with some altered character.
  • Continental drift describes the relative change in geographical locations of the continents. This theory was first established by Abraham Ortelius saying that there must have been drift in the location of continents. This theory also explains the reason behind similar-looking animals on different continents.
  • Natural calamities like earthquakes, tornadoes, volcanoes, hurricanes, etc cause large scale destruction of life and biodiversity. They also lead to the development of some characters in living organisms that are altered or modified forms of their original character. 
  • So, they too lead to change inn current species character and form new species.
  • So, all the given options are correct.
Multiple choice biology selection and evolution theory of natural selection natural selection evidence for evolution

Which of the following could not be considered as an evidence of evolution?

  1. The structural homology between the forearms of bats and humans
  2. The DNA sequence of the cytochrome-$c$ gene for bats and birds

  3. The dorsal nerve cord of crayfish and birds

  4. Fossils of dinosaurs

  5. A wasp embedded in amber
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
C Correct answer
Explanation

The dorsal nerve cord is a characteristic of chordates, but the presence of such a structure in both crayfish (an invertebrate) and birds (a vertebrate) is not a homologous trait used as evidence for evolution. The other options describe legitimate evidence like structural homology, molecular data, and fossil records.

Multiple choice biology selection and evolution theory of natural selection natural selection evidence for evolution

Choose the correct answers from the alternatives given.
In the case of the English peppered moth, which of the following occurred ?

  1. Bird predation was probably an important factor in natural selection

  2. Soot incorporated into the moths resulted in industrial melanism

  3. Dark moths were unknown before pollution

  4. Natural selection produced new genes adapted to the darkened landscape
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
A Correct answer
Explanation

In Industrial melanism, refers to the evolution of dark body colors in animal species that live in habitats blackened by industrial soot. The phenomenon has been documented in numerous species that hide from predators by blending in with their backgrounds. Birds play an important factor in natural selection.

So correct answer is A, Bird predation was probably an important factor in natural selection.

Multiple choice biology selection and evolution theory of natural selection natural selection evidence for evolution

The study of homologous structures in mature organisms provides evidence for the evolutionary relationships among certain groups of organisms. Which field of study includes this evidence of evolution?

  1. Comparative cytology

  2. Biochemistry

  3. Geology

  4. Comparative anatomy
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
D Correct answer
Explanation

Comparative cytology is the field of study involving looking at similarities in different organism's cells. 

Biochemistry compares DNA and proteins made from DNA. 
Geology is the study of the Earth. 
Comparative anatomy is the study of similarities and differences in the anatomy of different species. It is closely related to evolutionary biology and phylogeny (the evolution of species). The study of homologous structures in mature organisms provides evidence for the evolutionary relationships among certain groups of organisms, which comes under comparative anatomy. 
Therefore, the correct answer is option D.

Multiple choice biology selection and evolution theory of natural selection natural selection evidence for evolution

Organic evolution is the process by which complex organisms gave rise to simple inorganic materials in course of time

  1. True

  2. False
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
B Correct answer
Explanation

Organic evolution is the process by which changes in the genetic composition of populations of organisms occur in response to environmental changes.

So, the given statement is false

Multiple choice biology selection and evolution theory of natural selection natural selection evidence for evolution

Evolution of diversified species due to environmental changes is called as

  1. Divergent evolution

  2. Convergent evolution

  3. Evolutionary inertia

  4. None of the above
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
A Correct answer
Explanation
Divergent evolution is the accumulation of differences between groups which can lead to the formation of new species, usually a result of diffusion of the same species to different and isolated environments which blocks the gene flow among the distinct populations allowing differentiated fixation of characteristics through genetic drift and natural selection. Primarily diffusion, the basis of molecular division, can be seen in some higher-level characters of structure and function that are readily observable in organisms. For example, the vertebrate limb is one example of divergent evolution. The limb in many different species has a common origin, but has diverged somewhat in overall structure and function.
Multiple choice biology selection and evolution theory of natural selection natural selection evidence for evolution

An important evidence in favour of organic evolution is the occurrence of 

  1. Homologous and analogous organs

  2. Homologous and vestigial organs

  3. Analogous and vestigial organs

  4. Homologous organs only
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
B Correct answer
Explanation

An imperative proof for natural advancement is the event of homologous and minimal organs. Homologous organs are those which have the regular inception and are based on a similar central example yet they perform diverse capacities and have distinctive appearances, e.g. whale's flipper, bat's wings, feline's paws, steed's front legs, fledgeling's wings, bull's front legs, and human hands.

So, the correct option is 'Homologous and vestigial organs'.

Multiple choice biology selection and evolution theory of natural selection natural selection evidence for evolution

Choose the correct answers from the alternatives given.
As a mechanism of microevolution, natural selection can be most closely equated with

  1. assortative mating

  2. genetic drift

  3. differential reproductive success

  4. gene flow
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
C Correct answer
Explanation

Microevolution is the change in allele frequencies that occurs over time within a population. This change is due to four different processes: mutation, selection (natural and artificial), gene flow and genetic drift. As the natural selection a process in which organisms with certain inherited traits are more likely to survive and reproduce than are individuals with other traits. So natural selection is a differential reproductive success as it acquires useful

traits. 
So, the correct answer is differential reproductive success.