Zoology Quiz
Questions: 16 · 10 minutes
1. After repeated pesticide use, a larger proportion of an insect population survives the same dose. Which explanation best fits natural selection?
Each exposed insect deliberately developed resistance during its lifetime
The pesticide caused every insect to acquire the same beneficial mutation
Susceptible insects learned to avoid the pesticide and passed on that lesson genetically
Previously resistant insects survived and left more offspring
2. A whale flipper, a bat wing, and a cat foreleg contain similarly arranged bones despite serving different functions. What does this similarity most strongly indicate?
The structures evolved independently because the animals share a habitat
The animals acquired the same bones by using their limbs similarly
The animals must belong to the same genus
The structures were inherited and modified from a common ancestor
3. Cattle can obtain energy from cellulose-rich grass even though they do not produce enough cellulose-digesting enzymes themselves. What makes this possible?
Microorganisms in their digestive system break down cellulose
Their stomach acid dissolves cellulose without enzymes
Their liver changes cellulose into digestible protein
Their teeth convert cellulose directly into glucose
4. An owl's forward-facing eyes create overlapping visual fields. What ability does this arrangement especially support?
Judging distance accurately when approaching prey
Seeing equally well in every direction at once
Detecting ultraviolet light with no specialized receptors
Keeping each eye focused on an unrelated scene
5. In the scientific name Panthera leo, how are Panthera and leo related?
Panthera is the family, while leo is the genus
Panthera is the species, while leo is the subspecies
Panthera is the genus, while leo is the specific epithet
Panthera identifies the habitat, while leo identifies the diet
6. A freshwater fish has body fluids containing more dissolved substances than the surrounding water. Which response helps it maintain water balance?
Drinking large amounts of water and producing concentrated urine
Allowing its internal salt concentration to match the surrounding water completely
Retaining all metabolic water and stopping filtration by the kidneys
Producing abundant dilute urine while actively taking up salts
7. In a simple food web, a predator mainly eats one abundant herbivore. If the predator population sharply declines while other conditions remain stable, what is the most likely short-term effect?
The herbivore immediately evolves into a new species
The plants consumed by the herbivore increase because grazing stops
The herbivore population increases because predation pressure is reduced
The herbivore disappears because it depended on the predator
8. A whale repeatedly surfaces even though it lives entirely in water. What biological need chiefly explains this behavior?
It breathes atmospheric oxygen with lungs
It must warm its gills in sunlight
It absorbs oxygen only through exposed skin
It must leave the water to stabilize its swim bladder
9. A bat emits a high-frequency call and then changes direction after receiving returning sound waves. What information is it primarily extracting?
The chemical composition of nearby air
The magnetic polarity of the ground below
The position and movement of nearby objects
The body temperature of every nearby animal
10. Besides enabling flight in many species, what important function do feathers serve in birds?
Insulating the body and helping regulate temperature
Detecting dissolved chemicals in water
Producing vitamin D from sunlight
Exchanging respiratory gases through the skin
11. A growing crab periodically sheds its hard outer covering. Why is this process necessary?
The old covering loses its ability to prevent heat loss
The rigid exoskeleton cannot expand continuously with the body
The old covering blocks oxygen from entering the lungs
The exoskeleton must be replaced after every reproductive cycle
12. A vertebrate hatches in water with gills, later develops lungs and limbs, and usually has moist, permeable skin. To which group does it most likely belong?
Reptiles
Amphibians
Cartilaginous fishes
Mammals
13. Which combination of traits most clearly distinguishes mammals from other living vertebrate groups?
Four limbs and a backbone
Hair or fur and milk-producing mammary glands
Warm blood and internal fertilization
Lungs and a four-chambered heart
14. Which feature places corals in the phylum Cnidaria alongside jellyfish and sea anemones?
A segmented body with jointed appendages
Specialized stinging cells called cnidocytes
A muscular foot used for movement
A water vascular system with tube feet
15. An octopus lacks an external shell, but its body plan and evolutionary relationships place it in which phylum?
Echinoderms
Annelids
Mollusks
Cnidarians
16. Which set names the three main body regions of an adult insect?
Thorax, pelvis, and abdomen
Cephalothorax, abdomen, and tail
Head, trunk, and mantle
Head, thorax, and abdomen