Adaptations

The process by which physiological changes occur within an animal’s life as a result of exposure to new environmental conditions is:

• Acclimation

• Acclimatisation

• Adaptation

• Phylogenetic inertia

Which of the following is NOT a strategy used by evaders in a desert environment?

• Aestivation

• Burrowing

• High mobility

• Increased metabolic rate

Heterothermy enables camels to:

• Conserve energy

• Maintain a constant body temperature

• Save water

• Tolerate high temperatures

Which of the following statements about heat shock proteins is TRUE?

• Their genes show a high rate of mutation

• They are induced following exposure to low temperature

• They are only present in animals

• They are unique to desert species

Some species of fish have no haemoglobin. Where are they found?

• Antarctic

• Fast-flowing rivers

• Red sea brine pools

• Shallow lakes

Which of the following statements is TRUE?

• All polar mammals have thick subcutaneous adipose tissue

• Birds do not have thick subcutaneous adipose tissue

• Polar bears have thick subcutaneous adipose tissue because they live in a cold climate

• Thick adipose tissue is not essential in Arctic mammals

The graph shows the oxygen dissociation curves of haemoglobin from two species of mammals, S and T. If S is a human, what is T most likely to be?

• Fish

• Llama

• Reindeer

• Sheep

Which of the following is NOT an adaptation for high altitude?

• Increased affinity of haemoglobin for oxygen

• Increased mitochondrial density in skeletal muscle

• Reduced concentration of BPG in red blood cells

• Reduced pulmonary vasoconstrictor response

Decreased metabolic rate in deep sea pelagic fish is mainly due to what?

• High pressure

• Lack of light

• Low temperature

• Reduced competition

Homeoviscous adaptation increases membrane fluidity by:

• Increasing length of fatty acids in the phospholipid bilayer

• Increasing saturation of fatty acids in the phospholipid bilayer

• Reducing the melting point of the phospholipid bilayer

• Reducing saturation of fatty acids in the phospholipid bilayer