Great Transitions Tetrapods

Jaylene Tomlinson 10/3/23 NAME DATE 1. When Charles Darwin considered some of the unique structures found in modern animals, like the feathered wings of birds, he famously proposed that modern animals must have evolved from earlier forms that lacked those structures. He also predicted . (Fill in the blank with one of the statements below.) a. that it would be impossible to find fossil evidence for this idea because the fossil record is so incomplete. b. that genetic evidence would show that all organisms share a common ancestor. c. that fossils would be found with structures that are intermediate between early and modern forms. d. that fossil evidence would instead show that all modern animals have always existed in their present form. 2. Which of the following features describe Tiktaalik ? i. Neck ii. Lungs iii. Round head iv. Fins a. ii and iv only b. i, ii, and iv c. i, iii, and iv d. i, ii, iii, and iv 3. Examine the table below and select the row that best describes the setting, resources, and scientific processes used during the Tiktaalik expeditions. a. b. c. d. Location Maps/Photos Scientific Process Canadian Arctic Geological maps Hypotheses testing Iceland Road maps Predicting Alaska Aerial photos Questioning Arctic Circle Animal track maps Developing explanations Short Film Great Transitions: The Origins of Tetrapods Student Quiz Published November 2014 Revised March 2017 Page 1 of 4 www.BioInteractive.org

4. Which statement below is evidence that all tetrapods shared a single common ancestor? a. All tetrapods live partly in water and partly on land. b. All tetrapods are warm-blooded. c. All tetrapod limbs consist of rearranged fish fin rays. d. All tetrapod limbs have a common pattern of one bone, two bones, many bones, then digits. 5. The transition from fish to tetrapods is best described as: a. Like most of the great transitions in evolutionary history, it happened in very few big steps so that there are very few intermediate forms. b. Like most of the great transitions in evolutionary history, it happened in many small steps leading to many intermediate forms. c. Like no other transition in evolutionary history, it happened in many steps, so there are many intermediate forms. d. Like most of the great transitions in evolutionary history, it happened in a single step with no intermediate forms. 6. Which evidence supports the fact that tetrapods and fish are closely related? i. The embryos of modern fish and tetrapod look similar. ii. Both modern fish and tetrapods can swim. iii. Both modern fish and tetrapods are vertebrates. iv. The DNA of modern fish and tetrapods suggests that they have a common ancestor. v. Modern fish have limb bones that support their bodies. a. i, ii, and v only b. i, iii, and iv only c. iii and v only d. i to v are all supporting evidence 7. True or False. “Transitional organisms are not actual species.” Justify your answer in one or two sentences.

10. Explain why Neil Shubin and his colleagues had to travel to an area above the Arctic Circle to find the fossil of an animal that once lived in a warm swamplike habitat. Because they were hunting for rocks of the proper age and kind that were accessible at the earth's surface, Neil Shubin and his colleagues had to go to a region above the Arctic Circle to locate the fossil of an animal that formerly lived in a warm swamp-like habitat. This led them to the Canadian Arctic, where they discovered Tiktaalik, a fossilized animal having characteristics shared by both fish and tetrapod’s, in 2004. 11. In the film, Neil Shubin is shown hiking up a rocky hillside while recalling for us one of the exciting moments during the hunt for a Tiktaalik -like fossil animal. Neil says, “Beneath our feet were fossil fish bones, fragments of fossil fish bones, many thousands of pieces. It wasn’t just one fish; it was a whole aquarium, it was different species.” What did this discovery mean for the fossil-hunting team? The team's discovery of a layer of rock that developed in an environment that may have supported the existence of an animal similar to Tiktaalik was supported by the fossilized fish bones.