Download Beak of the Finch- Applications and Examples of Natural Selection

IB Biology
Application and Examples of
Natural Selection
Name ______________________________
Period _____ Date ___________________
1. Explain the following quote, "'evolution is the fundamental problem of biology while observation and
experiment are the fundamental tools of science'" (p.8). In other words, why has evolution been so problematic
to scientists (2 points).
2. Read the two paragraphs that begin on the bottom of page 9 with "To study the evolution of life…" What
makes the Galapagos Islands such an ideal place to study evolution by natural selection? Describe at least three
(3 points).
3. Despite the over exaggeration of the impact of the Galapagos finches on Darwin's own understanding of
natural selection, why are finches such a great example of this process (2 points)?
4.
a. define "selective episode" (1 point):
b. describe a significant selective episode that dramatically changed the populations of ground finches
on Daphne Major (2 points):
c. Was this episode an example of stabilizing, directional, or disruptive selection? Explain (2 points).
d. Sketch 2 adaptive landscapes to show how the fitness of finches with different beak sizes changed
during this episode (4points).
5.
a. Give Haldane's definition of a darwin (1 point):
b. if a species experiences a 2 % change in some character over 100 years, calculate the rate of
change in darwins (1 point).
c. When Haldane examined the fossil record, he concluded that the typical rate of evolution is one
Darwin, but during a single selective episode on Daphne Major, the finch population evolved at a
rate of 25,000 darwins. Explain this discrepancy (2 points). Hint- think about the volcano analogy
on p.111
6. Choose one of the following terms, and explain it using a concrete example from the book:
frequency-dependent selection; age-dependent selection; or sexual selection (2 points).
7. What new discovery regarding hybrids is discovered in chapter 8? Give one hypothesis to explain this
fitness change (2 points).