Fossils
Selection
Traits
True or False
Habitats
100
Scientists found a whale fossil in the middle of the desert because…
the desert habitat used to be an ocean.
100
The green anoles are such good climbers because
they had more sticky toe pads.
100
Becky has light-colored skin. During the summer, sometimes her skin turns red if she stays in the sun too long. Is this an inherited, acquired trait, or both?
Becky's skin color is a trait she got from her parents. Her skin color changes because of her interaction with the sun.
100
A polar habitat today was always a polar habitat in the past.
False
100
How could you figure out what the habitat used to be like where you live? How could you tell which plants and animals used to live there?
I could dig deep below the ground and look for fossils of living things that lived there a long time ago. The types of fossils I found would tell me what the habitat was like.
200
What evidence do we have that dinosaurs looked like big reptiles?
Dinoasurs skulls had similar skulls to reptiles today. Scientists found imprint fossils of scaly dinosaur skin. Dinosuars laid eggs.
200
There are so many different varieties of dogs because…
people chose to breed dogs with traits they wanted.
200
Chickens living today have bigger eggs than chickens that lived a long time ago. How do you think that happened?
People selected and mated the chickens that had the biggest eggs. Then they selected their babies that had the biggest eggs. Selection happened over many years.
200
We can learn about extinct animals by studying their fossils and comparing them to animals living today.
True
200
Scientists in Montana, USA, discovered a fossil mosquito in a rock that is millions of years old. What do you think the habitat was like in Montana millions of years ago?
Mosquitos need warm wet habitats to survive. That means that millions of years ago, there was a tropical habitat in Montana.
300
If a fossil skull had sharp pointy teeth in the front and back, is it a carnivore, omnivore, or herbivore?
Carnivore
300
List the one way of forming a new species
Selection
300
What kind of trait are blue eyes?
Inherited
300
When habitats change, the kinds of animals and plants that live there change, too.
True
300
How does living in a group help some animals survive? Give at least two animal examples to support your answer
Some animals survive better in a group because it helps them avoid getting eaten by predators. Other animals survive better because it helps them get food. Others animals survive better when the environment changes.
400
How are fossils formed?
Fossils form when a dead organism is covered by a layer of sediment. Over time, more sediment settles on top of the organism. Minerals in the sediment may seep into an organism and gradually replace the organism with stone. If the organism rots away completely, it may leave an imprint on the rock.
400
Explain how we have a variety of types of dogs today.
People used selection to choose the traits they wanted in a dog. If people wanted a small dog they chose the smallest dogs in a liter and bred it with other smaller dogs.
400
Sharing a favorite color. Is this an inherited trait?
No
400
Liking the same food is an inherited trait?
False
400
What if we dug up a forest on the bottom of the ocean floor? What does this tell us about the habitat?
Long ago it used to be a forest habitat.
500
What information would we learn from the fossil, by comparing it to an animal from today?
1. Our fossil likes to eat meat.
2. Our fossil is similar to skull A.
500
What effect did the brown anoles have on the green anole babies?
The green anoles that were poor climbers were more likely to get eaten by brown anoles, so they had fewer babies. The better climbers survived and had babies that were excellent climbers.
500
What traits might the chicks have from their parents?
1. Gray tail feathers
2. White spot under the eye
3. Brown feathers on head and neck
4. Striped or spotted feathers
500
Chickens today have bigger eggs than chickens that lived long ago because people artificially selected the chickens that produced the smallest eggs.
False, they selected chickens that produced the biggest eggs.
500
If a land developer cut down trees that were once homes to a scurry of flying squirrels, how would this affect the squirrels?
They would be less likely to survive. No shelter and food.