WGU C451/GNC2/1NC1 Integrated Natural Sciences Module 8 Solved 100% Correct

Explain the concept of natural selection. - ANSWER-It is a process where organisms with advantageous traits leave more offspring than organisms with other traits - causing populations to change over time. (key mechanism of evolution) variation - ANSWER-traits vary from individual to individual heritable traits - ANSWER-A trait that can be passed on genetically from parent to offspring. fitness - ANSWER-the number of offspring an organism leaves over its lifetime compared to other individuals in the population Describe an example of a population that changes over time due to natural selection. How do variation, heritable traits, fitness and natural selection allow change in the population to occur? - ANSWER-peppered moth, rat snake, humans, deer mouse, pesticide resistant insects, Galapagos finches, peacocks, warrior ants, nylon-eating bacteria, and lizards. (They have all adapted & made changes to support the environments they live in) Explain why adaptations are an important component of a species' survival. - ANSWER-because they are important for survival. If the specie does not adapt to its environment it lives in, it will not survive Describe adaptations of animals in extreme environments, such as a polar bear (in a cold, arctic environment) or - ANSWER-Polar Bear (cold- arctic environment): larger, tend to have a smaller surface area-to-volume ratio, their volume increases rapidly due to growing so quickly (Bergmann's Rule), short appendages (Allen's Rule) & small ears to conserve heat, although polar bears seem white, they are transparent, which allows sun to transmit to skin below, they have insulating layers that conduct heat slowly & slow down heat loss. Describe adaptations of animals in extreme environments, such a desert rabbit (in a hot, dry, desert environment). - ANSWER-Desert Rabbit (hot-dry-desert environment): smaller, long legs, large ears that increase the surface area available for heat dissipation, extensive blood vessels that carry heat from core of body to skin where convection cool them off, pale in color. Describe how variation, heritability, fitness, and natural selection contributed to the evolution of peppered moths - ANSWER-Variation: There are varying kinds of colors that can be selected by nature between the moths. Heritability: The idea that if you had more dark colored moths, they would give birth to dark colored baby moths which would grow up to be again a dark colored moth. It's an inheritable trait Fitness: you had increased survival depending on what color choice you were. Natural Selection Contributed to the Evolution: had a change in the environment. We had this habitat change, where we had a change of the color of trees. Change due to Industrial Revolution and all the pollution ash and smog. Describe how variation, heritability, fitness, and natural selection contributed to the evolution of antibiotic resistant bacteria - ANSWER-Variation: Resistance to poision Heritability: Resistance is inherited Fitness: Resistant Bacteria Natural Selection Contributed to the Evolution: Environmental Poison Describe how variation, heritability, fitness, and natural selection contributed to the evolution of Darwin's finches - ANSWER-Variation: Different Beak Shapes Heritability: Beak Shapes Are Inheritable Fitness: Food Specific Beaks Natural Selection Contributed to the Evolution: Altered Food Describe how anatomical homologies are examples of evidence that support the theory of evolution. - ANSWER-if things are looking a lot alike in terms of how they're put together, it's like that they came from the same source. Describe how vestigial organs are examples of evidence that support the theory of evolution. - ANSWER-have hidden organs that you don't necessarily see or even think that they have, that they're not using. These leftover vestigial organs. They're not using those pieces, but they still have those pieces there which would indicate that at some time it's possibly that they came from an animal that we came from, and we all had the same basic pieces. Describe how vertebrate embryo development are examples of evidence that support the theory of evolution. - ANSWER-if you look early enough in utero at development, lots of animals look very similar, in fact have almost all the same components and pieces and shapes. Describe how fossil record are examples of evidence that support the theory of evolution. - ANSWER-if you take the skeletons that you find and these bones and fossils that you find at the various levels going from deepest to the highest, you can use those to generate a time line of potentially related animals over time and see development of animals based on this structural change of their skeleton. Describe how biogeography are examples of evidence that support the theory of evolution. - ANSWER-that different animals that are closely related will look very different depending on where you find them. And that would seem to indicate that the specific environments they're found in is what's leading to specific adaptations of organisms in that environment.