The third part of a series of explanations how to solve IBO 2012 Part A problems.

This time we will begin with etology, a discipline concerned with behavior.

a.

b.
c.
d.
e.

Lets consider each statement step by step:

If we look at the graph 1, we can clearly see the differences between larger image and smaller image in all
three treatments with larger image reaching peaking higher than in small image group. This means the
statement is true.
In graph c we see that the percentages for right-handed and left-handed fiddler crabs are very similar,
therefore, we can conclude that male handedness is not important criterion.
In none of the experiments was the male waving rate, therefore, we cannot make any conclusions regarding
this statements and should tick it as incorrect.
When we look at graph 2 and compare treatment II and III we see almost no difference, thus, this statement
is incorrect.
This one is a tricky one. Lets first calculate the rations of each treatment. Treatment I: 10/3=3.3, Treatment
II: 3/1=3, Treatment III: 10/1=10. These ratios show you the difference in cheliped size. Now you have to
decide what is meant by females become more decisive: that is whether the percentage of females
approaching a male with a particular size reflects the decisiveness or the time required to approach the male
shows how quickly a female decides. I would choose the latter because the time taken by each female to
approach each reflection may include the time while a female is lingering and evaluating visual cues. If this
were true, we should look at graph B and what we see is almost no difference in Treatment II and III but a
difference between either Treatment I and II or Treatment I and III. As we calculated above, the image
differences are similar in Treatment I and II but both are different from Treatment III, thus, we could
conclude that difference in cheliped size of males may NOT be necessary before females become more
decisive. If we consider decisiveness being reflected by percentage of females choosing males with certain
size, then we should look at graph A and notice that there is no difference in Treatment I and II (both of
which have image ratio 3) but they both differ from Treatment III (the size ratio is 10). In this case you
should conclude that the statement is correct. However, if you compare statements a. and e., in my opinion,
they are not about the same thing: as I mentioned above, decisiveness, to my mind, is more reflected by the
time rather than by the percentage of females. If you have your explanation, do not hesitate to share it below
in comments.
The answers:

Its time for another problem:

a. If we notice a significant difference of smolt, we could easily say that salmon that had previous exposure
to PEA sometimes differ in preference for arms. Therefore, the statement is incorrect.
b. One thing I noticed during Olympiads is that if you find a word only in the statement, in 75% of cases
this will be incorrect statement. Fortunately, it is incorrect this time, too. The explanation for this is if
you compare control group with other three treatments outcomes while using PEA and in absence in
PEA, you will notice a marked difference in smolt proportion choosing PEA arm.
c. We cannot state if chemical cues plays a secondary role because we did not considered other
mechanisms such as visual or tactile (for example, vibration from waves) cues.

d. Is true because from the diagram we can notice a sensitive period at smolt stage during which PEA scent
induces a fish to choose the odor arm later in life.
The answers are provided below:

Now lets proceed to genetics and evolution:

Statement a. is not correct because if there was an epigenetic silencing of growth hormone, we
would see difference in size but not in gender.
Statement b. cannot be true because if male has no transgene (null group), there is still the same
ratio 70% to 30%.
Statement c. seems logical because the ratio is the same in all three groups and this means that not
the insert accounts for such weird ratio.
Statement d. would not account for the same 70%/30% ratio in males with no transgene present
(null) and thus it is incorrect.
The answers:

Another interesting problem about genetics:

To begin with you need to build a Punnett square from the information provided:
From the second sentence you can guess that the cross is like this Aa x aa (in classical Mendelian
inheritance a cross like this AA x Aa would give all progenies identical). To get a ratio 2:1 you need to
cross two heterozygotes: Aa x Aa, which means that creepers are heterozygotes.
When answering 36.2 you should remember that a ratio 2:1 occurs when there is a lethal allele involved.
Therefore, two creeper alleles give you a lethal phenotype only.

Lets look at some pedigrees:

Firstly, lets write down what we already know:

If we know that black color is determined by dominant allele, therefore, to get a

recessive phenotype we need to cross two heterozygotes, and because of that we
can say that I1 and I2 are both Aa. In order to get a black phenotype, the cross
should have been like this on the right:

AA

Aa

Aa

aa

We definitely know that II3 is black and owing to this we ignore aa genotype.
Therefore, the probability that he is heterozygous is 2/3.
To answer 37.2 lets go back to our pedigree and notice that III1 is a pure heterozygote Aa. To determine III2
genotype is a bit trickier. We know that II3 has a 2/3 chance of being an Aa and 1/3 of being an AA. We should
consider both cases and make two crosses to produce III2:
A

AA

Aa

AA

Aa

OR

AA

AA

AA

AA

A. 2/3 chances

B. 1/3 chance

In order for an offspring of III1 and III2 to be white, both parents must be heterozygotes thus we see that the B
cross of III2s parents will not produce any heterozygotes and this let us ignore this cross. From the A cross, we
see that there are chance of III2 being a heterozygote. The overall probability of III2 being a heterozygote is
x 2/3 = 1/3. Then lets cross both heterozygotes III1 and III2:
A
a
We see that there is chance of getting a white offspring.

AA

Aa

The overall probability is x 2/3 x = 1/3 x = 1/12.

Aa

aa

The official answers:

Another problem with alleles:

First of all, I would you different colors to mark what we already know:

To answer 38.1, lets look at homozygotes for R271Q and homozygotes for E290K which have the
activities 30 and <3, respectively. This means that if you have only one allele, then the activity will be
half of that of homozygote, that is, 15 and <1.5, respectively. When we have R271Q/E290K genotype,
then the enzyme activity will be the sum of the activities of both alleles, that is, 15+1.5=16.5.
The homozygote for Y424C has enzyme activity of 50%, whereas homozygote for R158Q has an
activity of 10, thus, the heterozygote Y will have the enzyme activity equal to 25+5=30.

To answer 38.2 the colored boxes will help you come to the answer quicker. Firstly, you need to find the
highest limit which still produces classical symptoms. What you can clearly see is that homozygote
E290K will have highest enzyme activity (try to work out, for example, a combination of E290/R407W,
which will give you only approximately 2% activity). Thus, the lower limit will be 10%. Now lets find
the lowest value which cause mild symptoms. The homozygote for Y424C gives you 25% and this is the
lowest possible value for mild symptoms (you can try to calculate, for example, combination of Y424C
with any of the first four alleles R231X, P292L, R407W and IVS-12 all of which give you 0.5% activity
and the overall activity of such heterozygotes is 25+0.5+25.5). So the answer should be 10% to 25%.
The answers provided below:

Now lets proceed to plant genetics.

And you need to fill this table:

When you consider i., you should notice that both parents are homozygous dominant for C1 and this this locus
does not affect the ratio. The maximum number of progeny is therefore 16 (4 genotypes for chsA locus and 4
genotypes for chsJ locus). According to condition (ii), homozygosity for the recessive alleles at any of the three
loci causes green seedlings, lets make a Punnett square and quickly highlight the boxes that contains green
plants, that is:

ChsA
ChsJ
ChsA
chsJ
chsA
ChsJ
chsA
chsJ

ChsA ChsJ
ChsA ChsA ChsJ
ChsJ
ChsA ChsA ChsJ chsJ

ChsA chsJ
ChsA ChsA chsJ ChsJ

chsA ChsJ
chsA ChsA ChsJ ChsJ

ChsA ChsA chsJ chsJ

chsA ChsA ChsJ chsJ

ChsA chsA ChsJ ChsJ

ChsA chsA chsJ ChsJ

chsA chsA ChsJ ChsJ

ChsA chsA ChsJ chsJ

ChsA chsA chsJ chsJ

chsA chsA ChsJ chsJ

chsA chsJ
chsA ChsA
chsJ ChsJ
chsA ChsA
chsJ chsJ
chsA chsA
chsJ ChsJ
chsA chsA
chsJ chsJ

Thus, we can tick the box with the ratio 9:7.

When you consider ii., you have to take into consideration all three genes. Overall you will have 1 x (2x2x2) =
8 offsprings (parent 2 will produce only chsA chsJ c1 gametes whereas parent 1 with genotype ChsA chsA
ChsJ chsJ C1 c1 will produce 8 types of gametes considering independent assortment). You do not need to
build the Punnett square as you can just use laws of probability to calculate how many purple offsprings you
will have: to satisfy this condition, the offspring MUST have at least one dominant gene for ALL three genes,
that means, there is chance of getting ChsA into gamete, the same is true for ChsJ and C1. This in turn gives
you 1/2x1/2x1/2=1/8 chance. All the remaining 7 genotypes will be green because they contain at least one pair
of recessive alleles. Thus the ratio is 1:7.
The answers are provided below:

Another interesting problem follows next:

For question 41.1 I would suggest to use colors and to mark different codons like this:

For Vombatus the codons are TAT-GAC-CGG which code for Tyr-Asp-Arg.
For Notoryctes the codons are TTA-TGA-CCG which code for Leu-Stop-Pro.
Now 41.2a is incorrect because a frameshift mutation occurred in Vombatus, not Notoryctes.
Remember that it is just part of the gene and we do not see the codons preceding 451 or going beyond
500, therefore, the statement is inconclusive.
The statement c. is correct as we noticed in 41.1 for Notoryctes that it contains a stop codon TGA.

The answers are provided below:

Another problem is concerned with ecology.

Lets start with 42.1.

a: take a look at graph A for the vertical cliff and notice the differences (width and shape) in (a), (b) and
(c) for EM and for LL.
b: compare the tide levels in graph A of (a) for EM and LL, for example, and you can easily sea that EM
are mostly found at levels higher than 2.7. However, LL is mostly found below 2.6, so you have to
conclude that zones of distribution are not the same.
c: again look at graph A and compare all three EM at different temperatures (a), (b) and (c). The peaks
are quite the same for all three reaching approximately 3.6. So this statement is true.
d: now you have to look at graph B which depicts the sloping rock. The zone of occupation for EM is
between 2.6 and 2.8 (overall 0.2 m). The zone of occupation for LL from 1.5 to approximately 2.4
(overall 0.9 m), thus you can conclude that EM has smaller zone of occupation and the statement is
correct.
e: you cannot make any conclusions about EVs tolerance to heat as this was not tested. Therefore, the
statement is inconclusive.
In 42.2 you need to determine which species has the lowest GOT activity compared to other two species.
What you can see from diagram B is that EV and LL both occupy approximately the same tide level,
therefore, you may predict that they will have the same enzyme activity. On the contrary, EM occupies a

different niche which is the same as the mean tide level (MHWS) and owing to this it will have a
different enzyme activity. This means you should choose EM.
The answers are as follow:

Another ecology problem:

First of all, highlight key words in the problem:

The rollers rapidly form balls from the faeces (in <1 hour), roll them away from the food source,
and deposit them in or on the soil to ensure exclusive use of the dung. The tunnellers make nests
directly under the food source and transport dung into the nest where they form dung balls ( a few
hours). Dwellers feed and reproduce directly in the dung pat. Kleptoparasites use faeces portions
monopolised by other groups, e.g., by penetrating dung balls made by the rollers or the dung mass
in the subterranean nests of the tunnellers.

The statement a. seems logical if you look at the table and notice the differences in proportions of four species
differing at each of 6 periods of time investigated in this study. This means that due to competition, species try
to avoid each other.
Take a look at the table once again and notice how many rollers are present:

No other species outnumber the rollers and, therefore, the statement b is correct.
Statement c. is definitely incorrect because if you highlighted the key words in the statement above you should
conclude that all of them exploit the same resources in DIFFERENT ways (one roll them away from the
foodsource, other deposit it in the soil, third feed directly in the dung pat and fourth cheat by using others
resources).
Statement d seems quite unlikely as all four species are using resources in different ways and are active during
different times during the 24-hour period.
When answering statement e, you should remember what is meant by resource partitioning and competitive
exclusion. The principle of competitive exclusion states that two species that compete for the same resources
cannot coexist together. Consequently, competing species often evolve distinguishing characteristics in areas
where they both coexist. And this in turn leads to resource partitioning, a shift in usage of the same resource by
competing species. By obtaining resources in slightly different ways, individuals minimize competition. As we
can see from the data provided, four species live in the same area and obtain their food in different ways,

therefore, we can conclude that because of competitive exclusion and resource partitioning in the past, these
four species can now live together. The statement is correct.
Again, for statement f you need some previous knowledge. The realized niche is the part of fundamental niche
that is not occupied by the competitor. The niche that an organism occupies in the absence of competing species
is called its fundamental niche.
A good picture below demonstrates the essence of these two concepts:

To answer statement f you need to know the proportions occupied by each species in the ABSENCE of all three
other species. Thus, as we do not have such data, we cannot make any conclusions about niches and choose this
statement as inconclusive.
The answers:

More ecology to come:

If we look at the graph, we can notice that in 1980, when the crater erupted, there were no species and no
cover above the treeline (graph begins at point 0). Thus, this statement is correct.
The main difference between primary succession and secondary succession is that primary succession
usually occurs in a place lacking soil whereas secondary succession usually starts by an event that
reduces an already established ecosystem , and as such secondary succession occurs on preexisting soil.
Thus, it is true that in this case secondary succession occurred. If you look at the curve of Cover, you can
notice that it is not an exponential graph but is more reminiscent of linear curve which means that
succession occurred step-by-step, not immediately. Thus, this statement is incorrect.
The statement c seems correct as we are left with a landscape free from any flora and fauna (thus, we
have a lot of space) and as there are no competing high trees that could reduce light exposure, the latter is
not a limiting factor either. Thus, this is a correct statement.
As you can notice from the graph under the name Species, during first two years after eruption, the
number of species boosted almost instantly and reached about 20 species, however, in the following the

number if species fluctuated insignificantly between 19 and 22 species. Because of that, you can
conclude that statement e is true, too.
Again, you need some previous knowledge for statement f. The climax stage is a fully functional
ecosystem, occurring when a plant's ecosystem has reached a point of stability. If you look at the graph,
you should notice the oscillating number of species throughout the years and near the end of the study.
The percentage of cover also does not show the plateau, thus, you cannot say that this end point is the
stable stage. We need further data to see if this ecosystem reached a climax stage and due to on-going
quite significant oscillations we should conclude that the statement is incorrect.
And the answers:

Lets proceed to our next problem about marine communities.

Statement a. is correct if you remember the classification of

organisms. Except for rockweed, which belongs to
Phaeophyta, a class of algae which are not animals, all
other species are animals.
For statement b. you need to remember the protostomates
and deuterostomates. Starfish belongs to Echinodermata
phylum, barnacles are classified into Arthropoda phylum
and mussels belong to Mollusca phylum. If you remember
the picture on the right, deuterostomes include only
echindoerms and chordates, therefore, the statement b. is
incorrect as you have three protostomates in the
community.
As I mentioned above, all our animals in this community
belong to three phyla: Arthropoda, Echinodermata and
Mollusca, thus, the statement c. is correct.
For statement d. you need to know what is meant by the term keystone. A keystone species is a species
that has a magnificent effect on its environment relative to its abundance. They play a significant role in
maintaining the structure of an ecological community, affecting many other organisms in an ecosystem
and helping to determine the types and numbers of various other species in the community. If we look
back at our picture in the task, we will see that if we remove all starfish, the mussels proliferate
uncontrollably and become the dominant species. All other species then go extinct. Thus, we can
conclude that starfish are a keystone species regulating the abundance of other species in a community.
The statement d. is correct.
Go back to the picture in the task and notice that all the mussels are in the middle intertidal zone whereas
the majority of starfish is in the lower intertidal zone. We can conclude that these two species are
competitors and live in different zones due to competitive exclusion and resource partitioning. Statement
e. is thus correct.
Again, if you look at the third box of the picture, you will notice that only the mussels are present and
now they occupy both the middle intertidal zone and the lower intertidal zone. Statement f. is thus correct.
The same is true for statement g. because without starfish, the mussels gained access to more resources
and outcompeted all other species.
Statement h is also correct because in the absence of starfish, the mussels moved to lower intertidal zone
which was occupied by competitors. The realized niche in this case for the mussels is the middle intertidal
zone.
The last statement is again true because the mussels and starfish are competitors, and without competition
the mussels (they are predators) gained access to more food resources (prey).
And the answers:

Two more ecology problems to go.

When I encounter such problem, I usually highlight key word in the problem:
Growth rate of most intertidal organisms generally declines in an upshore direction. Lim and
Green (1991) studied a population of the Baltic clam, Macoma balthica (a common bivalve),
from two levels of the shore at Hudson Bay, Canada. Annual shell growth rings are distinct in
the two sub-populations (see figure below) and the clams from the two zones do not differ
genetically. The Baltic clam normally buries itself and is generally hidden from predators. It is
the intermediate host to trematodes; the daughter sporocysts of the parasites are found mainly
in the gonads of the clam, causing partial or total disappearance of the gonads. Shorebirds, the
definitive host of these trematodes, are present in large numbers at the upper shore during ebb
tide. The clams in Hudson Bay have been observed to make conspicuous tracks on the sand
flats at ebb tide. The number of metacercariae (the next stage in the parasites life cycle)
encysted on the inner shell surface of crawling and burrowing clams from the two shore regions
were counted.

Now, lets look at statement a. If you look at the diagram and remember that the line median divides clams
that were smaller and larger than their median length at their respective tidal level lines, you can notice that
there are many more dots to the right of median of each crawlers and burrowers in upper shore compared to
lower shore. Thus, the statement a. is incorrect as the upper
shore organisms of this species seem to grow larger.
Now lets draw other lines to visualize statement b.:
What you can see from the picture on your right is that both
lines (red and blue) are much higher in the upper shore group
compared to lower shored group. Thus, statement b is correct.
For statement c. remember that shorebirds are present in large
numbers at the upper shore. When you compare the number
of clams in upper shore with the respective values in lower
shore, you see that there many more clams in both crawlers
and burrowers of the upper shore. Thus, you can predict the

crawling may make the clams more noticeable by shorebirds, the definitive hosts of the parasite. Thus, the
statement is true.
Statement d is clearly incorrect because look at the lower shore group of burrowers and you can clearly see that
they have less parasites than crawlers at the lower shore group. Thus, the statement d. is incorrect.
Statement e. seems correct because shorebirds are present at the upper shore and both crawlers and burrowers
are more concentrated at the upper shore when compared to lower shore numbers.
Statement f is also correct because if you look at the upper shore groups of two sub-populations, you can see
that the bigger the number of parasites, the greater the length of the clams.
Statement g. is also correct because if you look at lower shore group which is not exposed to shorebird and has
no attractiveness to shorebirds and no evident advantage to the parasite, still conform to the rule that the bigger
the number of parasites, the larger the length of clams. This means that not heredity but some other factors
influenced growth rate.
And the answers:

Finally, the last problem in Part A.

Lets tackle the first two problems.

External group is the one with the least number of characteristics present in other groups. In this case if
we look at the vertical columns we can see that A1 has only one character present in all the groups, the
notochord. Thus, we can conclude that A1 is our external group.
49.2 is an easy one because we have already determined that the external group only has notochord (f)
which is shared between the internal groups.
Below there are more questions concerning this task:

To answer 49.3 you need to look at all horizontal rows and find a
character present in A2-A6 but absent in A1. This turns out to be
e. vertebral spine.
In 49.4 you should note that A2 and A5 are the most related
groups because they both have characteristics b-f and only A5
has a property a. We can make a quick drawing on the right,
which shows us that character B is the last point of divergence.
To make a cladogram you need to work through each row and see if an individual has it or does not. It
should look like this:

The answers are provided below: