3 minute read
Quiz
QUIZ
1. What is true of a Lazarus taxon?
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a. It mainly applies to those organisms that have shown up in the fossil record. b. It does not exist today because researchers keep closer track of extinct species. c. It involves all living and previously living forms of life, even if their presumed extinction was recent. d. It mainly involves species with long lifespans that reproduce under circumstances where the taxon’s numbers are rare.
Answer: c. The phenomenon of the Lazarus taxon applies to past or presently living organisms that were once considered extinct but have been later rediscovered. All types of organisms can have Lazarus taxa.
2. A species that has survived unchanged for many millions of years on earth is called what?
a. Extant species b. Lazarus species c. Elvis species d. Living fossil
Answer: d. A living fossil is a type of species that has survived relatively unchanged in nature for hundreds of millions of years for whatever reason.
3. What is a species called that affects the populations of many other species called?
a. Umbrella species b. Keystone species c. Apex predator d. Flagship species
Answer: b. A keystone species is one that affects the population of a number of other species. Some can be apex predators but they do not have to be to be called a keystone species.
4. What least likely happens in a pseudoextinction?
a. The species is transformed somehow b. The species undergoes cladogenesis c. A subspecies takes over for a parent species d. The species becomes extant again
Answer: d. In most cases, in a pseudoextinction, the species is transformed, a subspecies or daughter species becomes prominent, or the species breaks into at least two other species. It would be rare for the species to become extant again because that isn t what defines a pseudoextinction.
5. What is the number one cause of human habitat degradation?
a. Mining b. Urban sprawl c. Fishing practices d. Agriculture
Answer: d. Each of these can cause degradation of the habitat but agriculture plays the largest role in this problem.
a. Climate change can destroy habitats b. Climate change is a manmade phenomenon c. Climate change can introduce competition of a species d. Climate change will lead to extinction of species
Answer: b. Climate change does lead to extinction for many reasons but it is not just a manmade phenomenon. It has occurred since the dawn of the earth for reasons other than human interference.
7. What is not true of mass extinction events?
a. They mainly apply to multicellular organisms b. They are usually measured using marine fossils c. They occur at predictable times d. They are sometimes difficult to define
Answer: c. Each of these is true of mass extinction events except that they aren t predictable in their timing.
8. What species did not die off as part of the largest extinction event so far, called the Permian-Triassic extinction event?
a. Trilobites b. Mammal-like rats c. Insects d. Dinosaurs
Answer: d. Each of these died off in this extinction event except for the dinosaurs, which hadn t ascended yet at this time.
9. What is the least likely contributor to short-term shocks that have resulted in extinction events?
a. Asteroid impacts b. Volcanic eruptions c. Sun spots d. Reductions in sea level
Answer: c. Each of these can cause a shock to the environment except for solar phenomena, such as sun spots.
10. What is not a way that volcanic eruptions can cause mass extinctions?
a. They can trigger an ice age b. They can cause acid rain c. They can emit carbon dioxide, which causes global warming d. They can emit dusts that inhibit photosynthesis
Answer: a. Volcanic eruptions can do all of these things but, other than causing short-term temperature reductions, they trigger global warming rather than ice ages.
