Evolution & Natural Selection
What is the process called when humans choose organisms with desired traits to reproduce?
Artificial selection
What type of rock preserves most fossils?
Sedimentary
What term means a change in a population across generations?
evolution
What substance do fish gills remove from water?
Dissolved oxygen
What term means an animal with a backbone?
Vertebrate
Why does a struggle for existence occur in most populations?
More individuals are produced than available resources can support.
Which remains are most likely to become fossils?
Hard parts such as shells, bones, and teeth.
What are structures with similar anatomy because they came form common ancestor called?
Homologous structures
What structure detects vibrations and movement in nearby water?
lateral line
What term describes an animal whose body temperature is strongly affected by its environment?
Ectotherm
Which individuals are most likely to pass their traits to the next generation?
Individuals with helpful inherited traits.
What are intermediate fossils important evidence for?
They show stages of change between groups of organisms.
What is the formation of a new species called?
Speciation
What structure helps many bony fish control buoyancy?
swim bladder
What term means the ability to float or remain suspended in water?
Buoyancy
What does "survival of the fittest" mean?
Better-suited individuals tend to survive and reproduce more
In undistrubed sedimentary rock, which layers are usully older-the lower layers or upper layers?
lower layers
What is slow, steady evolutionary change over time called?
Gradualism
What ability allows some sharks and rays to detect weak electrical signals?
Electroreception
What term means light produced by a living organism?
Bioluminescence
Why can inherited variation help a population survive environmental change?
Some individuals may already have traits suited to the new conditions.
What type of fossil is distinctive and can be used to compare the relative ages of rock layers?
Index fossil
What is it called when two species evolve in respone to changes in each other?
Coevolution
A fish lives in dark water and needs to sense prey without relying on sight. What adaptation would most directly help it detect signals produced by living organisms.
Electroreception
What term means coloration or patterns that help an organisms blend with its surroundings?
camouflage