(Stnd 09) Quiz-Fossil Record WS

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Multiple Response
Identify one or more choices that best complete the statement or answer the question.

What can we discover about ancient life by studying sedimentary rocks?
(Choose all that apply)

a.	Which kinds of organisms went extinct and how long they survived.
b.	The number of chambers in a dinosaur’s heart and how loud a lion roared.
c.	The color of the leaves on a plant and the thickness of fur on a mammal
d.	How a species’ physical structure changed over time

Examine structure and function in these fossils, and think about the environments they lived in.

Based upon your analysis of this fossil record, determine which answer or answers below are best supported by this diagram.

a.	This illustration shows that this area had four different environments over time and organisms adapted to and lived in each of these four environments.
b.	The law of superposition reminds us that the bottom layer of sedimentary rock with the clam fossil formed last, and the top layer with the fish fossil formed first.
c.	This record reveals changing environments with two aquatic and two terrestrial layers.
d.	This diagram shows how igneous rock was changed into metamorphic rock. It also shows how erosion due to weathering eventually formed basalt rock with fossils in it.

Multiple Choice
Identify the choice that best completes the statement or answers the question.

Examine structure and function in these fossils.

Fossils in Layers of Sedimentary Rock

The fossil evidence found in these sedimentary layers reveals that...?

a.	carnivores evolved from omnivores and herbivores during the Cretaceous period.
b.	organisms with exoskeletons caused the extinction of organisms with endoskeletons
c.	land and marine animals evolved together millions of years ago in the same time period
d.	vertebrate organisms (backbones) developed after invertebrates (without backbones)

Examine the fossils shown below. These were found in Oklahoma, and were determined to be from the Mesozoic Era and the following Cenozoic Era.

Based on this fossil record, what conclusions can you draw about this region?

a.	Comparing the structure of the Mesozoic Era fossils with the structure of the Cenozoic Era fossils reveals that these marine organisms evolved to become land organisms.
b.	The fossils show that both sea creatures and land animals existed at the same time in this region.
c.	Marine fossils show that an ocean once covered this area, and terrestrial fossils show that uplifting occurred which resulted in the return of land animals.
d.	Based on this fossil record, we can conclude that marine organisms were driven to extinction by terrestrial invaders which took over the aquatic environment.

A paleontologist was digging for fossils at several cliff faces in Colorado. As she excavated deeper down the geologic column, she noticed that the fossils looked different.

Fossils in the Geologic Column

What did she most likely observe regarding structure and function as she went down the cliff face?

a.	There were no patterns concerning how fossils were deposited in the rock layers.
b.	More complex organisms were found only in the older rock layers.
c.	Simpler and less complex organisms were found closer to the surface in younger rock.
d.	Simpler and less complex organisms were found at deeper depths in older rock.

Geologic Column (Sedimentary Rock)	Index Fossil Trilobite

At layer F there is an index fossil called a trilobite which thrived in the Cambrian period.
Which choice best explains why no trilobite fossils are in any strata above layer F?

a.	This fossil record does include additional trilobites with structural adaptations.
b.	Due to mutations, trilobites changed their body structure so that they looked different.
c.	The environment changed resulting in the extinction of the trilobites.
d.	An asteroid impact caused the trilobites to migrate to a different region.

Comparing the skeletons of which of the following fish would best reveal any structural changes in the species over time?

a.	The same fish just after it hatched and when it was full grown.
b.	Two living fish, male and female, that could produce viable offspring.
c.	A fish that lived recently and a similar fish that lived thousands of years ago.
d.	The same fish just before it received a cut and after it healed.

This diagram shows layers of rocks that contain fossils

Two-Part Question
1) How can you determine that fossil 6 and fossil 4 are similar in age?
2) What kind of environment did these organisms live in?

a.	1) Fossils 1 and 2 are in the same layer of sedimentary rock. 2) These organisms most likely lived in a grassland area.
b.	1) Fossils 6 and 4 are both sea shells, so they must have lived at the same time. 2) These fossils most likely lived in a marine environment.
c.	1) Fossils 4 and 6 are in the same layer of sedimentary rock. 2) These organisms lived in an aquatic environment.
d.	1) Fossils 4 and 6 are the same species. 2) These organisms lived in a deciduous forest biome.

Horse Fossils
Past to Present

Fossil evidence suggests that horse’s physical structure began changing around 55 million years ago. Fossils of forest plants have been found near the first horse fossils, but mainly grassland fossils are found near later horse fossils.
Which statement is the most logical conclusion based on this fossil evidence?

a.	Leg length in horses did not change. Only skull sizes increased.
b.	Body size in horses remained unchanged because its environment stayed the same.
c.	Body size in horses increased in response to environmental changes
d.	Modern horses are not structurally similar to ancient horses.

10.

Three sedimentary layers were exposed in a rock quarry. The sandstone layer at the bottom contained fossils of three different types of dinosaurs. The layer above it contained mainly volcanic ash. The top layer of shale contained fossils of only one type of dinosaur.

Which of the following interpretations of this fossil record is the most logical?

a.	Excessive predation by carnivores caused the population of herbivores to crash which resulted in extinction of two species of dinosaurs.
b.	A volcanic eruption caused the extinction of two dinosaur species. Only smaller variants of the third species survived but this variant prospered in the post-volcano environment.
c.	This fossil record shows that dinosaur species were abundant in the Jurassic period, but only a few species survived into the Triassic period.
d.	This sedimentary rock displays tectonic uplift which formed a shallow ocean resulting in the extinction of two out of three dinosaur species.