S7L5b. Natural Selection Study Guide Answer Key What is an adaptation? The evolutionary process whereby a population becomes better suited to its habitat. This process place over many genersations. What is natural selection? What is artificial selection? Artificial selection is selective breeding. Natural selection is the process through which only certain individuals in a population are able to survive and reproduce. What is necessary to have among a species in order for natural selection to take place? There must be genetic variation in a species in order for certain traits to become successful or advantageous. How are natural selection and genetic engineering different? Natural selection happens when random, natural genetic variations become more successful in an environment due to natural environmental changes. Genetic engineering is done when scientists realize certain traits would be more advantageous in a certain environment, so they take the genes of an organism that exhibits those traits, and put the genes that code for those traits into the original organism. What would be an advantage for an animal of having white fur as opposed to brown fur? In what biome would this trait be advantageous? Could hide in the snow or in cold weather, would be good in the tundra or taiga. List some traits that a plant growing in the desert would need to have. Efficient use of water, deep roots, some sort of protection against animals that might eat it (spikes, thorns, etc). If resources were unlimited, would natural selection happen? Probably not, since even organisms with disadvantageous traits would survive. There would be no competition for resources, so everyone could survive, not just the “fittest”. How are leaves different in the coniferous forest and the rainforest? Why do you think they’ve adapted this way? Conifer trees have waxy, thin needle leaves, so when snow/water hits it, it just runs off and does not weigh down the leaf or the tree. In the rainforest, leaves are broad and wide to help plants collect water. Plants in the rainforest need a lot of water, and their leaves help them collect it. Explain why birds that live near water would have webbed feet. Organisms with webbed feet can probably swim through water more quickly because they can push more water with more surface area on their feet. Why rabbits with longer ears survive more frequently than ones with shorter ears? Blood flowing in long thin ears is a cooling mechanism for rabbits.
S7L5b. Natural Selection Study Guide Answer Key What is an adaptation? The evolutionary process whereby a population becomes better suited to its habitat. This process place over many genersations. What is natural selection? What is artificial selection? Artificial selection is selective breeding. Natural selection is the process through which only certain individuals in a population are able to survive and reproduce. What is necessary to have among a species in order for natural selection to take place? There must be genetic variation in a species in order for certain traits to become successful or advantageous. How are natural selection and genetic engineering different? Natural selection happens when random, natural genetic variations become more successful in an environment due to natural environmental changes. Genetic engineering is done when scientists realize certain traits would be more advantageous in a certain environment, so they take the genes of an organism that exhibits those traits, and put the genes that code for those traits into the original organism. What would be an advantage for an animal of having white fur as opposed to brown fur? In what biome would this trait be advantageous? Could hide in the snow or in cold weather, would be good in the tundra or taiga. List some traits that a plant growing in the desert would need to have. Efficient use of water, deep roots, some sort of protection against animals that might eat it (spikes, thorns, etc). If resources were unlimited, would natural selection happen? Probably not, since even organisms with disadvantageous traits would survive. There would be no competition for resources, so everyone could survive, not just the “fittest”. How are leaves different in the coniferous forest and the rainforest? Why do you think they’ve adapted this way? Conifer trees have waxy, thin needle leaves, so when snow/water hits it, it just runs off and does not weigh down the leaf or the tree. In the rainforest, leaves are broad and wide to help plants collect water. Plants in the rainforest need a lot of water, and their leaves help them collect it. Explain why birds that live near water would have webbed feet. Organisms with webbed feet can probably swim through water more quickly because they can push more water with more surface area on their feet. Why rabbits with longer ears survive more frequently than ones with shorter ears? Blood flowing in long thin ears is a cooling mechanism for rabbits.
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