Fossil Evidence Quiz

At which level would you expect to find the oldest fossils?

• Level A

• Level B

• Level C

• Level D

Why wouldn’t you expect to find dinosaur fossils in Level D?

• They should be in Level A, the most recent level.

• They should be Level A, the oldest level.

• They would not be in Level D, the oldest level.

• They should not be in Level D, the most recent level.

How do species with homologous structures support the theory of evolution?

• Homologous structures show how natural selection works.

• Homologous structures show how closely related two species are.

• Homologous structures suggest the species had a common ancestor.

• Homologous structures prove one of the species evolved from the other.

Fill in a word that correctly completes the paragraph. Paleontologists study ancient organisms. Over millions of years, sediment hardens into rock and preserves the remains of living things. A _____ is the impression that an organism or part of an organism leaves in rock.

• FOSSIL

• IMPRINT

• CAST

• MOLD

Isabelle learns that the fossil record helps people understand life on Earth millions of years ago. Which statement is true about the fossil record?

• The fossil record shows only evidence of traces of animals in rock.

• The fossil record shows no evidence of how organisms evolved.

• The fossil record shows only plant life that has become extinct.

• The fossil record shows patterns that are like data that can be analyzed.

Daryl learns that millions of years ago, Earth’s climate went through a rapid change and experienced an ice age. This rapid climate change puts a lot of stress on the plant life of Earth. How would plant life most likely react to this stress?

• Plants that adapted to the cooler conditions would survive and rapidly evolve into a new species.

• All plant life would become extinct, and the new plants would evolve very slowly.

• The plants would gradually change over time and produce new species.

• All plants would evolve into new species and survive the climate change.

Luis goes to the Museum of Natural History and sees a display of bones from a dolphin’s flipper and a cat’s leg. They are very different, but the display shows that their bones have homologous structures in their limbs. What can you infer about these two organisms from their homologous structures?

• They evolved at the same time.

• They evolved rapidly.

• They share a common ancestor.

• They live in similar environments.

Match the following vocabulary:

• homologous structures

• All the fossils that have been discovered and what scientists have learned from them

• fossil

• The preserved remains or traces of an organism that lived in the past

• evidence

•  Structures that are similar in different species and that have been inherited from a common ancestor

• fossil record

• Information or data that is used to support a conclusion

Tags

NGSS.MS-LS4-1

NGSS.MS-LS4-2

The mechanism that causes evolution is ​ (a)   .

• natural selection
• biogeography
• vestigial structures
• homologous structures

Process by which individuals that are better suited to their environment survive and reproduce most successfully; also called natural selection. (a)  

• Survival of the Fittest
• Extinction
• Derived trait
• Artificial Selection