Vertebrates

Question 1

Evidence for reconstructing vertebrate history (3)

Answer 1

• comparative anatomy
• development of extant taxa
• geologic context

Question 2

Archaeopteryx lithographica

Answer 2

Late Jurassic, Germany

Shows soft tissue preservation of flight feathers

Question 3

Acanthostega gunnari

Answer 3

Late devonian, Greenland

Series of traits that show early evolution of the ear complex, and transitions from aquatic to terrestrial environments

Question 4

Index fossils

Answer 4

Forms of life that existed during limited geologic times and are used as guides to the age of the rocks they’re in

Question 5

Fossil types (2)

Answer 5

Body- preserved remains, particles in sedimentary rock

Trace- evidence of of past behaviour, structures in sedimentary rocks

Question 6

Taxon-based measures (4)

Answer 6

Taxon presence
Relative abundancescale
Genetic diversity
Millennium- scale baselines

Question 7

Taxon free measures (8)

Answer 7

Biomass
Diversity
Trophic structure
Ecological network
Functional traits 
Gene flow
Assessing species invasions

Question 8

Adaptive radiation & how (4)

Answer 8

Rapid diversification usually in response to some form of change

• geographic colonisation
• new resources
• key innovations
• major extinctions

Question 9

Taphonomy

Answer 9

Study of processes controlling preserv

Question 10

Taphonomic bias

Answer 10

Some organisms or environments have a

Question 11

Preservation potential

Answer 11

Relative likelihood that an organism will be preserved in the fo

Question 12

Primary processes that contribute to how a fossil is found

Answer 12

Necrolysis

Biostr

Question 13

Biostratinomy

Answer 13

Post decay transport and burial p

Question 14

Bioturbation

Answer 14

Mixing up of skeleton eg t

Question 15

Biological necrolytic and biostatinimic destructive agents

Answer 15

Predation/scavenging

Scattering

Question 16

Biocenosis

Answer 16

Life assemblages

Reflects natural community (single event)

Question 17

Thanatocenosis

Answer 17

Death assemblage
Derived from transport and winnowing processes
Generally incomplete representation of faunas/floras
Time averaged- over representation of high durability and high abundance

Question 18

Lagerstätte

Answer 18

‘Storage place’ - environments of exceptional preservation

Question 19

Konzentrat- Lagerstätten

Answer 19

Disarticulated accumulations, ‘bone beds’

Most common for marine invertebrates

Question 20

Konservat-Lagerstätten

Answer 20

Articulated remains, often includes soft tissue preservation

Question 21

Factors affecting biostratinomy

Answer 21

Depositional environment
Body size (how far it can travel)
Hydrodynamic qualities (flow in air and water)

Question 22

Biogenic minerals

Answer 22

Formed by metabolic processes eg. Hydroxyapatite

Dissolve in water when buried

Question 23

Disgenesis

Answer 23

Physical and/or chemical alteration after burial (temp < 250°C)
Compositional types: permineralization, replacement-exchange, recrystallization

Question 24

Permineralization (diagenesis)

Answer 24

Filling of open spaces with sedimentary minerals

Formation of sedimentary SiO2

Question 25

Replacement-exchange (diagenesis)

Answer 25

Biogenic minerals replaced with sedimentary minerals

Question 26

Recrystallization (diagenesis)

Answer 26

Formation of minerals from precursors of see chemical formula Typically calcium carbonate eg. Aragonite to calcite

Question 27

Autochthonous assemblage

Answer 27

Assemblages with little or no transport or winnowing | Actively inhabited depositional environment

Question 28

Allochthonous assemblage

Answer 28

Assemblages transported to depositional environment from separate environment of habitation

Question 29

Phylogeny

Answer 29

Pattern of evolutionary relationships

Question 30

Taxonomy

Answer 30

Naming system based on common ancestry, derived from phylogenetics, describes evolutionary relationships

Question 31

Biological species concept

Answer 31

Population of at least potentially interbreeding individuals that is reproductively isolated from other such groups, and are able to produce fit offspring

Question 32

Morphological species concept

Answer 32

Individuals United by common morphology that is distinct from other such groups and is presumed to correspond to a biological species.

Question 33

Plesiomorphy

Answer 33

Primitive or basal character

Question 34

Symplesiomorphy

Answer 34

Shared primitive or unspecialized character

Question 35

Apomorphy

Answer 35

Derived or specialised character

Question 36

Autoapomorphy

Answer 36

Derived character or an evolutionary novelty found in only one taxon

Question 37

Synapomorphy

Answer 37

Shared derived character between taxa. Is a potential homology Only informative character for inferring phylogenetics relationships

Question 38

Homology

Answer 38

Any character in different or

Question 39

Homoplasy

Answer 39

Convergent evolution | Acquisition of shared characters from different origins

Question 40

Advantages of morphological characters

Answer 40

Primary data for majority of life Provides historical information Provides direct info about adaptation and development

Question 41

Disadvantages of morphological characters

Answer 41

Phenotypic data approximated genetic evolution to an unknown degree 'Character' delineation is subjective- are characters real? Weight of individual characters, likelihood of transformations unknown

Question 42

Advantages of molecular data

Answer 42

Direct data of genetic evolution Character delineation is more objective (still have to align sequences) Likelihood of character transformations (transversions vs transitions) statistically predictable

Question 43

Disadvantages of molecular data

Answer 43

Data absent for 99.9% of known life Relationship to external environment unknown, adaptation not understood Homoplasy in base pairs increases with divergence times and rates. Genes have deep time limits

Question 44

Phylogenetic methods

Answer 44

Parsinomy (cladistics) Maximum Likelihood Bayesian Inference

Question 45

Monophyly

Answer 45

Lineage of organisms that includes a common ancestor and all of its descendants

Question 46

Paraphyly

Answer 46

Lineage that includes a common ancestor but not all of its descendants

Question 47

Clade

Answer 47

defined by their most inclusive taxonomic composition Diagnosed using derived characters (apomorphies) used to support topology at a node and diagnose the clade named at that node

Question 48

Node-based clade

Answer 48

Subtending taxa, their common ancestor and all its descendants

Question 49

Stem-based clade

Answer 49

All taxa more closely related to a defined taxon

Question 50

Apomorphy-based clade

Answer 50

Clade named based on 1st occurrence of a particular morphology