FREE NEET Biology Practice MCQ Test: Evolution Exercise 2 Questions Answers With Detailed Explanations [PDF]

Answer: (a)

One of the first attempts to explain the mechanism of evolution was made by Jean Baptiste de Lamarck. His theory was Inheritance of Acquired Characters. The theory states that the characters acquired during lifetime are passed on to the progeny and then to subsequent generations and new species are produced.

Answer: (a)

Answer: (c)

Answer: (a)

Answer: (c)

The common ancestor of both ape and man is Dryopithecus – a 20 million years old fossil discovered from Africa. Austroalopithecus also lived in Africa between 6 million to 1 million years ago. The genus Homo evolved 2 million years ago from one of such Australopithecines in Africa and then only moved out of the continent.

The first such Homo lived throughout Asia, some parts of Europe and Africa. But obviously its evolution took place in Africa.

Answer: (b)

The analogous organs are different in origin or basic plan, but have similar functions or adaptations. Wings of butterfly and wings of bird and fins of fishes and flippers of whale are some of the examples of analogous organs.

Answer: (c)

The first fossil of the horse was found in north America. It was named Eohippus. This horse was about the size of a fox having short head and neck. The forefeet were with four complete fingers and one splint of first finger and the hind feet with three functional toes and one splint of fifth toe. Other stages in the evolution of horse were mesohippus, merychippus, pliohippus and equus.

Answer: (a)

Answer: (b)

Answer: (b)

Normally bacteria cannot survive in antibiotic containing medium but if it does so it must have acquired resistance against that antibiotic.These are well adapted to grow in streptomycin-containing medium and thus are more evolved. So due to natural selection only the more evolved and better adapted species is able to survive.

Answer: (b)

Answer: (d)

The organs which have similar functions but are different in their structural details and origin are called analogous organs. The analogous structures are the result of convergent evolution.

Answer: (b)

The change in the colour of peppered moth is due to the mutation of single mendelian gene for the survival in the smoke-laden industrial environment. It is called Industrial melanism.

Answer: (c)

Cenozoic era is also called the age of mammals. In this era, the first mammals originated on earth.

Answer: (a)

Directional selection is observed in the moth, Biston betularia during industrial melanism. Under this, individuals at one end of the frequency distribution are favoured and so more individuals of that type will be present in the next generation.

Answer: (c)

The term evolution was coined by Herbert Spencer, an English philosopher which means unrolling or unfolding of nature that brings about an orderly change from one form or condition to another resulting in descendents becoming different from ancestors. Thus, it is history and development of race alongwith variations.

Answer: (c)

Answer: (c)

The first scientific explanation of origin of life was put forward by a Russian Scientist, A.I. Oparin in 1923. J.B.S. Haldane (1928), England-born Indian Scientist, also made similar observations regarding the origin of life. According to them primitive atmosphere was reducing atmosphere because hydrogen atoms (most numerous and most reactive) combined with all available oxygen atoms to form water and leaving no free oxygen.

Answer: (d)

The given diagram of marsupials of Australia provides an example of divergent evolution. Divergent evolution is the accumulation of differences between groups which can lead to the formation of new species. It is usually due to diffusion of the same species to different and isolated environments which blocks the gene flow among the distinct populations allowing differentiated fixation of characteristics through genetic drift and natural selection.

Answer: (a)