NJU Extinctions: Past, Present & Future Spring Semester, 2021
Mid-Term Examination
True-False Questions Identify the following statements as being either true (T) or false (F).
1. Extinction is the local disappearance or removal of all members of a biological species from a F particular area or region. 2. The three evolutionary faunas defined by Sepkoski (1981) are the Cambrian, Paleozoic and T Modern faunas. 3. Estimates for the percent species-level extinction intensities characteristic of the “Big Five” F mass extinction events all exceed 85 percent. 4. In order to test general extinction-cause hypotheses using paleontological data multiple T comparisons among well documented extinction events are required. 5. The first fossil widely recognized by scientists as representing an extinct species was a F dinosaur. 6. Charles Darwin in England, and Georges Cuvier in France, agreed that the process F extinction occurred much more rapidly than the process of speciation. 7. David Raup and Jack Sepkoski distinguished between “background” and “mass” extinction F events on the basis of a species-level compilation of biostratigraphic data. 8. The establishment of national parks as refuges for biodiversity was pioneered in the US. T
9. Evolution is the change in the inherited characteristics of individuals through successive T generations. 10. The term “fossil” referred originally to anything that was dug up out of the ground. T
11. The term periodization refers to the practice of defining sequential blocks of time via T reference to major changes or transitions in the character of cultural, technological and/or biotic systems. 12. Species (or higher taxonomic groups) that have been declared extinct, but living individuals F of which have been rediscovered subsequently, are referred to a “Elvis” species or “Elvis” taxa. 13. The Hadean interval of earth history came to an end the final time the Earth cooled T sufficiently to allow formation of a solid crust. 14. The Precambrian Eon constitutes approximately 50 percent of Earth history. F
15. The first living creatures to appear on Earth were single eukaryote cells. F
16. Bolide impacts were probably more common during the Precambrian than the Phanerozoic, T but the lack of direct evidence for this assumption is attributed to the rarity of well-preserved Precambrian sediments and ocean floor. 17. The Mesozoic is the Phanerozoic Era with the longest duration. F
18. The three large, island continents of the early Paleozoic were Laurentia, Baltica and Serbia. F
19. Graptolites are part of the Cambrian Evolutionary Fauna. T
20. The first living organisms to have invaded the land from the oceans, rivers and/or streams F were eurypterid arthropods. 2
21. A monphyletic group is a single evolutionary lineage that includes all species to have evolved T from an ancestral species and the ancestral species itself. 22. Sea level stood very low throughout the Silurian Period. F
23. During the Devonian Period the first true forests and deep soils became established on land. T
24. The Siljan bolide impact took place during the Devonian Period of earth history. T
Matching Match the items in following lists.
25. Extinction nomenclature - match the species category with an appropriate example.
a. Extinct species i. Xylococcus bicolor (Mission Manzanita) ii.
b. Extripated Species ii. Tyrannosaurus rex (non-avian dinosaur) iv.
c. Ghost Species iii. Lipotes vexillifer (Yangtze River Dolphin) iii.
d. Lazarus Species iv. Ursus arctos (Brown Bear) v.
e. Zombie Species v. Latimeria chalumnae (Coelocanth) i.
26. Evolutionary Faunas - match the taxonomic group with the appropriate Evolutionary Fauna.
a. Monoplacophora i. Cambrian Evolutionary Fauna i.
b. Gastropoda ii. Paleozoic Evolutionary Fauna iii.
c. Trilobita iii. Modern Evolutionary Fauna i.
d. Cephalopoda ii.
e. Articulata ii.
27. Mass extinctions - match the mass extinction with its correct rank order of magnitude from largest (1) to smallest (5).
a. End-Devonian i. 1 iv.
b. End-Permian ii. 2 i.
c. End-Triassic iii. 3 iii.
d. End-Ordovician iv. 4 ii.
e. End-Cretaceous v. 5 v. 3
28. Aristotle’s Chain of Being - order the following groups according to Aristotle’s “Chain of Being” series from simplest (1) to most complex (= most conscious) (5).
a. Fish i. 1 ii.
b. Minerals ii. 2 i.
c. Reptiles iii. 3 iv.
d. Birds iv. 4 v.
e. Trees v. 5 ii.
29. Fossil Preservation Types - Identify the follow fossils according to their preservation type.
a. i. Body fossil ii.
b. ii. Mold fossil ii.
c. iii. Cast fossil i
d. iv. Trace Fossil iii.
e. iii./iv.
a.
b. c. d.
e 4
30. Types of stratigraphy - match the following types of stratigraphy with the data that defined their units.
a. Biostratigraphy i. Stratified rock type ii.
b. Chronostratigraphy ii. Fossil content iii.
c. Lithostratigraphy iii. Time of origination i.
d. Chemostratigraphy iv. Absolute age determination v.
e. Geochronology v. Isotopic abundance iv.
31. Cell types - match the organism with the description of its cell type.
a. Bacteria i. Prokaryote i.
b. Spriggina ii. Eukaryote iii.
c. Archaea iii. Metazoan (= multicellular eukaryote) i.
d. Blue-Green Algae i.
e. Stromatolite i.
32. Grades & Clades - match the designated group with its correct phylogenetic identifier.
a. i. Monopyletic group i.
b. ii. Polyphyletic group iii.
c. iii. Paraphyletic group ii.
d. ii.
e. iii.
a.
b. c. d.
e. 5
33. Extinction Model - Fill in the correct boxes for the end-Devonian extinction flow chart from the selections provided.
a. i. Global warming i.
b. ii. Glaciation -
c. iii. Sea-level regession iii.
d. iv. Drawdown of atmospheric CO2* ii.
e. v. Sea-Level Transgression v.
* This should have read Drawdown of atmospheric O2. Since the typo was mine everyone was given credit. for this question. 6
Multiple-Choice Questions Select the correct answer from the alternatives provided. Note: more than one alternative may be correct. Be sure you select all alternative answers that are correct.
34. According to the latest IUCN summary (2020) the percentage of described species known to be extinct, or suspected to be extinct in the wild, is which of the following.
a. 0.02% b. 2.0% c. 5.0% d. 10.0% e. 25.0%
35. In the early 1980s David Raup developed a simulation-based model for transcending the limits of paleontological taxonomic databases so species-level extinction intensities could be estimated. The name of this model was which of the following?
a. Bullets Over Broadway b. Field of Gold c. Waiting for Godot d. Field of Bullets e. The Quick & the Dead
36. Over the course of the Phanerozoic stage-level extinction-intensity data exhibit a/an ______trend.
a. increasing b. steady state c. decreasing d. irregular e. random
37. Identify which of the following mechanisms can result in sea-level changes greater than hundreds of meters.
a. Global warming b. Continent-continent tectonic collision c. Continental glaciation d. Isostatic loading/release e. Increase in the rate of sea-floor spreading
38. Identify the environmental effect(s) that is/are not common to both bolide impact and LIP volcanism extinction mechanisms.
a. Global darkness b. Global warming due to release of greenhouse gases c. Thermal flash d. Acid rain e. Increased albedo
39. Identify the mechanism(s) by which extinction can act to promote biodiversity.
a. Increase in the level of extinction resistance of survivor species b. Alteration of selective regimes c. Evolutionary-ecological stacking d. Reduction of incumbency advantage e. None of the above 7
40. Identify the first scientist who convincingly demonstrated that biological species could go extinct.
a. Leonardo da Vinci b. Georges Cuvier c. Thomas Jefferson d. William Hunter e. Charles Wilson Peale
41. Identify the researcher(s) who did not believe that species could be driven to extinction quickly by catastrophic environmental changes from the following list.
a. Georges Cuvier b. Charles Darwin c. Otto Schindewolf d. George Gaylord Simpson e. Norman Newell
42. Identify which of the following statements are consistent with Van Valen’s new evolutionary law (= the Red Queen Hypothesis).
a. Extinction resistance increases with longevity b. Rapid generation time give species an inherent advantage in surviving extinction events c. Adaptations acquired by other, competing species can reduce the fitness of species in their local environment d. Major body-plan shifts exhibit no association with instances of co-evolutionary changes e. Mechanisms that promote genetic recombination offer no advantage to species in terms of surviving extinction events
43. Extinction periodicity has been questioned on which of the following grounds?
a. Lack of strict conformance between extinction peaks and a 26 m.y. periodic signal b. The availability of alternative (non-periodic) mechanisms that might induce an apparently periodic signal in taxic-richness data c. Lack of a known astronomical mechanisms that can account for species extinctions specifically d. Statistical significance of the periodicity data-analysis result e. None of the above
44. From the following list identify any charitable organization or society that is not dedicated to the conservation of species as one of its primary goals.
a. Sierra Club b. World Wildlife Fund c. National Audubon Society d. Paleontological Society e. None of the above
45. Identify the country that has been most active in establishing national parks.
a. United Kingdom b. Europe c. United States d. China e. Russia
46. Identify the advantages inherent in the 1989 Chinese Protection of Wildlife Law.
a. Acknowledges that all Chinese wildlife in owned by the people of China through the Chinese state b. Explicitly extends protection to species “at or near” extinction c. Allows regional administrators to draw up their own lists of protected wildlife d. Spreads administration across multiple local, regional and national ministries e. None of the above 8
47. Identify the geological time interval in which the oldest evidence of life has been found.
a. Phanerozoic b. Proterozoic c. Archean d. Hadean e. Chaotian
48. Identify the geological time interval during which an oxygenated atmosphere developed on Earth.
a. Phanerozoic b. Proterozoic c. Archean d. Hadean e. Chaotian
49. Identify the reasons it took such a long time for an oxygenated atmosphere to develop on Earth.
a. The planet took a long time to cool down from a molten state* b. Photosynthetic algae did not appear until the latter stages of the Proterozoic c. The Snowball Earth reflected too much sunlight back into space d. The accumulation of O2 was delayed because the oceans and marine sediments absorbed virtually all excess production. e. The accumulation of O2 was delayed until after terrestrial materials has absorbed excess production
* a is. a possible answer though not the one I was looking for. Anyone who selected a was given credit for a correct answer.
50. Identify the extinction event(s) associated with the Neoproterozoic.
a. Acritarch extinction event b. Huronian extinction event c. Sturtian extinction event d. Ediacaran extinction event e. None of the above
51. The Huronian glaciation(s) is/are thought to have been produced by what mechanism(s)?
a. Proliferation of photosynthetic algae b. Reduction of atmospheric CO2 concentration c. Evolution of the Ediacaran fauna d. Weakening of the planetary greenhouse effect e. Progressive increase in the Sun’s luminosity
52. The acronym GOE stands for which of the following?
a. Great Oxygenation Event b. Great Ordovician Extinction c. Graptolite Ordovician Extinction d. Green Opening of the Earth e. None of the above
53. Recalling the distribution of Cambrian continents identify the statements that are true.
a. Unimpeded circum-arctic marine circulation b. Unimpeded equatorial marine circulation c. Impeded circum-antarctic marine circulation d. Five large marine gyres e. Upwelling zones off the eastern coast of Gondwana 9
54. Identify which members of the Modern Evolutionary Fauna that were present in the Early and Middle Paleozoic oceans.
a. Bivalves b. Gastropods c. Cephalopods d. Echinoids e. Bony fish
55. Identify the biomere extinction stage descriptions that are true.
a. Stage 5: characterized by only a few “disaster” species b. Stage 4: characterized the progressive elimination of endemic species. c. Stage 3: characterized by further speciation and recruitment that enhances morphological diversity d. Stage 2: characterized by endemic speciation and recruitment from deep-water habitats e. Stage 1: characterized by shallow water survivors from the previous extinction event
56. Identify the Ordovician marine invertebrate groups that can be classified ecologically as demersal taxa.
a. Eurypterids b. Graptolites c. Ostracoderm fish d. Litiitid (orthoceridid) cephalopods e. Ammonite cephalopods
57. Identify the statements that are true concerning late Ordovician glaciation events.
a. Ice sheets confined to Gondwana b. Primary evidence for glaciation is glacial striations in Late Ordovician sediments and rocks c. Areal extent of the Late Ordovician ice sheet on the order of 6000 km in diameter d. Evidence exists for Late Ordovician ice caps at both the northern and southern rotational poles e. Faunal evidence for the presence of late Ordovician glaciers ambiguous
58. Identify the factors thought to have been important in causing the end-Ordovician extinction event.
a. Global cooling b. Eustatic sea-level regression c. Collapse in marine productivity d. Diversification of the marine plankton biota e. Marine anoxia
59. Identify the Early Paleozoic continents that had not been amalgamated, through tectonic collisions, into the continent of Euramerica by the Silurian.
a. Avalonia b. Baltica c. Gondwana d. Laurentia e. Siberia
60. Identify the statements about the environment of the Silurian Earth that are true (relative to modern levels).
a. High atmospheric O2 concentration b. Low atmospheric CO2 concentration c. High mean surface temperature d. Low eustatic sea level e. None of the above 10
61. Identify which of the following causal mechanisms are thought to have been responsible for the (minor) late Silurian extinction events.
a. Decline in marine primary productivity b. Eustatic sea-level regression c. Anoxia events d. Large igneous province (LIP) volcanism e. Bolide impact
62. Identify the organismal groups that did not experience a substantial taxonomic radiation in the Devonian.
a. Trilobites b. Articulate brachiopods c. Bivalves d. Jawless fish e. Chondrichthyan fish (sharks & rays)
63. From the following list identify the victims of the end-Devonian extinction event.
a. Ammonoid cephalopods b. Agnathan fish c. Articulate brachiopods d. Bryozoans e. Cystoid echinoderms
64. Identify which of the following causal mechanisms are thought to have been responsible for the end- Devonian extinction event.
a. Ocean anoxia b. Bolide impact c. Eustatic sea-level rise d. LIP volcanism e. Changes in atmospheric O2 composition resulting from diversification of terrestrial plants
65. Identify which of the following causal mechanisms are thought to have been common to the Cambrian, end-Ordovician and end-Devonian extinction events.
a. Ocean anoxia b. Bolide impact c. Eustatic sea-level rise d. LIP volcanism e. Continent-continent tectonic collision