Exam 4: Biodiversity and Evolution

Genes mutate, ____________________ are selected, and populations____________________.

The earth's variety of deserts, grasslands, forests, mountains, oceans, lakes, rivers, and wetlands can be described as ____.

How are geographic isolation and reproductive isolation related?

The role that an organism plays within its ecosystem is its _____________..

The scientific theory of evolution explains how life on the earth changes over time due to changes in the genes of____________________.

New species arise when a mutation occurs and an organism is born much different than its parents.

Deserts, tropical forests, prairie grasslands, and coniferous forests have distinct climates and certain species; they are all examples of ____.

In a process called ____________________, one species splits into two or more different species.

In a population of wild bees, a mutation resulted in slightly larger wingspan in some of the bees. This larger wingspan made the bees more efficient in their flights to flowers to collect nectar. Thus, these bees became more successful at surviving and reproducing. This trait was passed on to offspring, and eventually the larger wingspan variety of bee replaced their smaller-winged relatives completely. - Because this mutation produced a specific wing trait that was passed onto offspring, the mutation must have occurred ____.

A species that can live in many different places and eat a variety of foods could be described as ____.

Geographic isolation and reproductive isolation can both lead to speciation.

Species with broad niches are described as ____ species.

The process by which members of isolated populations become so different in genetic makeup that they cannot produce live, fertile offspring if they are rejoined together is best described as ____.