DP IB Biology: SL

Topic Questions

Syllabus Edition

First teaching 2014

Last exams 2024

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5.1 Evolution & Natural Selection

1
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1 mark

What is speciation?

  • The process of separating organisms into species groups.

  • The absence of gene flow between two populations.

  • The development of new species from existing species over time.

  • The exposure of two separate populations to different environmental conditions.

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2
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1 mark

Which of the following statements about selective breeding is correct?

  • Certain alleles are more likely to be passed on to offspring because they are advantageous and aid survival in an organism's environment

  • All of the offspring of the first generation are bred together to produce the second generation

  • Selective breeding is a recently developed technique

  • Crop varieties currently used by humans have been selectively bred from wild varieties

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3
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1 mark

Which process does not generate heritable variation in a population?

  • Mutation

  • Mitosis

  • Metaphase I of meiosis

  • Fertilisation

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4
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1 mark

Which of the following statements correctly explains the process of natural selection?

I. Some species produce small numbers of young and provide higher levels of parental care

II. Advantageous alleles increase an individual's chance of surviving and reproducing

III. Individuals that change to suit their environment pass their alleles on to offspring

IV. Advantageous alleles increase in frequency in the population

  • I and II only

  • I, II, III, and IV

  • II, III, and IV only

  • II and IV only

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5
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1 mark

Scientists use theories to explain observed phenomena. Which of the following combinations of observed phenomenon and explanation shows how scientists developed the theory that explains antibiotic resistance in bacteria?

  Observed phenomenon Explanation
A. Resistance to an antibiotic appears soon after an antibiotic is first used Bacteria respond to a new antibiotic by developing resistance
B. Resistance to an antibiotic appears soon after an antibiotic is first used Bacteria with alleles that provide resistance to the antibiotic survive treatment and pass on their alleles
C. Bacteria with alleles that provide resistance to the antibiotic survive treatment and pass on their alleles The frequency of resistant alleles increases in a bacterial population
D. Antibiotic resistance in bacteria is on the increase in hospitals Patients in hospitals are more susceptible to infection than the general population.

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1
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1 mark

The image shows the general skull structure of reptiles and mammals, as well as details of the structures inside their ears. The labels A-C indicates structures that evolutionary biologists think are equivalent to each other in both reptiles and mammals.LaGuZFue_h-1

Which is the most likely explanation for the structures shown in the image?

  • Mammals and reptiles evolved by adaptive radiation

  • Mammals evolved from reptiles

  • Reptiles evolved from mammals

  • The jaws and ears of mammals and reptiles have evolved to be similar to each other

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2
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1 mark

Several species of lava lizard of the genus Microlophus are found only in the islands of the Galapagos. A group of scientists recorded the mating displays of male lava lizards in different parts of the Galapagos, using the amplitude of a wave to represent the height and length of head bobbing behaviour. The map shows the mating displays of some male lava lizards currently living on different islands of the Galapagos.

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Which of the following statements about mating displays in Galapagos lava lizards are correct?

I. Mating displays are the same between members of the same species of lava lizard

II. Mating displays show continuous variation across the geographical range of the Galapagos lava lizards

III. The mating displays suggest that lava lizards evolved by gradual divergence from a common ancestor

IV. The mating displays recorded show all the stages of lava lizard divergence

  • I, II, and III only

  • I, II, III, and IV

  • II and III only

  • II, III, and IV only

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3
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1 mark

In adult humans, the ability to digest the lactose sugar in milk depends on the presence of an allele known as -13910*T. Individuals with this allele continue to produce the enzyme lactase into adulthood; this is known as lactase persistence. Individuals without this allele are not able to produce lactase after infancy and cannot digest lactose as adults. The table below shows the frequency of the -13910*T allele in European Neolithic hunter-gatherers who lived around 5 000 years ago and in modern Europeans.

  European Neolithic hunter-gatherers  Modern Europeans
Frequency of -13910*T allele 0.03 (+/- 0.11) 0.74 (+/- 0.06)

Which of the following can be concluded from the table?

  • There is no significant difference in the frequency of the -13910*T allele between Neolithic hunter-gatherers and modern day humans in Europe

  • Lactase persistence gave a survival advantage to humans at some stage between Neolithic and modern-day times

  • Lactase persistence gave a survival advantage to European Neolithic hunter-gatherers

  • Adult European Neolithic hunter-gatherers did not consume milk

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4
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1 mark

The pneumococcal conjugate vaccine (PCV13) provides protection against infection caused by the bacterium Streptococcus pneumoniae. The graph shows the number of cases of invasive pneumococcal disease (IPD) caused by antibiotic resistant S. pneumoniae before and after the introduction of PCV13.

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Which statement correctly explains the number of cases of IPD caused by antibiotic resistant S. pneumoniae after the introduction of PCV13?

  • The vaccine is killing the bacteria that cause the infections.

  • The vaccine has reduced the use of antibiotics, meaning that resistance alleles are no longer advantageous.

  • The vaccine has reduced the use of antibiotics and the bacteria respond by becoming less resistant.

  • The vaccine has reduced the use of antibiotics, preventing resistance alleles from being passed on when bacteria divide. 

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5
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1 mark

The pelvic bones of whales are located in the equivalent position to the hip bones of land mammals, though they are not attached to the rest of the skeleton. These bones have long been thought of as vestigial structures leftover from the process of evolutionary change. Scientists researched the relationship between the size of whale pelvic bones and the size of whale testes. The graphs show some of the results of the study.

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Which of the following statements relating to whale pelvic bones are correct?

I. Whale pelvic bones are homologous to the pelvic bones of land mammals.

II. There is no relationship between the body size of a whale, as represented by rib size, and the size of a whale's testes.

III. The pelvic bones of whales are vestigial structures with no function.

IV. The pelvic bones of whales are not vestigial but are involved in reproduction.

  • I and II only

  • I, II, and III only

  • I, II, and IV only

  • II and IV only

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11 mark

Why do species evolve over time?

  • To become better adapted to their environment.

  • Because of changes in the bodies of organisms.

  • Because of changes in the heritable characteristics of organisms.

  • Because certain characteristics are advantageous.

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21 mark

Which of the following must occur for speciation to take place?

  1. Two populations of a species must be separated by a mountain range or body of water.
  2. No gene exchange can take place between two populations of a species.
  3. Two populations must develop differences in their physical characteristics.
  • I and II only

  • II only

  • II and III only

  • I, II, and III

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31 mark

The image below shows a series of fossils.

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How does this set of fossils provide evidence for evolution?

  • They show the complete transition between fish and four-legged land animals.

  • They show that species change to become better adapted to their environment.

  • They strengthen the evidence for species change over time provided by the rest of the fossil record.

  • They show that limbs are always advantageous over fins.

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41 mark

The diagram below shows how selective breeding has developed several modern crop varieties from wild wheat.

The selective breeding of modern wheat from wild wheat would begin with the breeders selecting individuals with many, large seeds.

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What is the correct continuation of the process for the selective breeding of modern wheat from wild wheat?

 

Stage 1

Stage 2

Stage 3

A

Selected individuals are bred together

Offspring which produce many, large seeds are bred together

Stages 1-3 are repeated over many generations

B

Selected individuals are allowed to reproduce asexually

Offspring are allowed to mature

Stages 1-3 are repeated over many generations

C

The genes for these desirable characteristics are isolated

These desirable genes are inserted into wheat gametes

Fertilisation takes place and the plants are allowed to mature

D

Selected individuals are bred together

Offspring which produce many, large seeds are bred together

Stages 1-3 are repeated once more

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51 mark

Which of the following processes generate genetic variation?

  1. Random assortment
  2. Mitosis
  3. DNA replication
  4. Random fertilisation
  • I and III only

  • I and IV only

  • I, III, and IV only

  • I, II, III, and IV

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61 mark

Which of the following must occur for natural selection to take place?

  • Sexual reproduction.

  • Genetic variation.

  • The presence of predators.

  • Advantageous characteristics.

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71 mark

Which of the following is not a reason for the evolution of melanism in peppered moths?

  • Predators such as birds act as a selection pressure, leading to differences in survival rates of moths with and without melanism.

  • Pollution from industry causes the death of lichens, leading to darkening of tree bark.

  • There is variation in the gene coding for melanin production in the moth population.

  • Some moths acquire darkened wings as a result of soot particles in the air, providing them with camouflage.

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81 mark

Research was carried out on beak size in the island-living finch species Geospiza fortis. G. fortis feeds on seeds, which are plentiful, small, and soft in the years when the weather is normal, but which become larger and tougher in drought years. Some of the research results are shown in the graph below.

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Which of the following statements explains the results in the graph?

  • Finches adapt to drought years by developing larger beaks, passing on the characteristic to their offspring, and leading to an increase in average beak size.

  • Average finch beak size increases during years of drought and decreases during wet years.

  • Average beak size increased from 9.5 mm in 1976 to 9.9 mm in 1977, before slowly decreasing to 9.7 mm by 1979.

  • Finches with larger beaks have an advantage when competing for food in drought years, and are therefore more likely to survive and pass on their alleles, leading to an increase in average beak size.

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91 mark

Which of the following would reduce the likelihood of antibiotic resistance evolving?

  1.  Reducing the use of antibiotics.
  2. Taking measures to reduce the spread of infectious bacteria.
  3. Researching new antibiotics.
  • I only

  • I and II only

  • I and III only

  • I, II, and III

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101 mark

Research was carried out into the emergence of antibiotic resistance in the antibiotics used to treat infection X between the years 2000-2016.

Different antibiotics were recommended during different time periods due to concerns about developing resistance. Note that ciprofloxacin is used to treat a range of infections and not just infection X, while tetracycline is not used to treat infection X but is used to treat many other mild infections.

Some of the results of the research are shown below.

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 What conclusion can be drawn from these results?

  • Resistance evolves when the use of an antibiotic increases.

  • Ceftriaxone should be used to treat all infections.

  • Infection X should not be treated with antibiotics.

  • Tetracycline should no longer be used.

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