MENDOZA, AUBREY GALE S.

FINAL EXAM
0755 BIOL 311 LEC

1. If the common ancestor of Cnidarians were an open-ocean jelly fish,

what would you infer regarding the evolutionary trends in the relative

importance of the polyp and medusa stages?

Delicate siphonophores, enormous medusae and corals,

feathery hydroids, interstitial polyps, and box jellies with intricate

eyes are all examples of Cnidaria's morphological diversity. Despite

their variety, these rather basic metazoans are all nematocyst-

bearing, most likely due to shared ancestry. The body plans of

cnidarians are fundamental, with two primary evolutionary trends:

anthozoans, such as Nematostella or Acropora, have just planula

larva and polyp phases, whereas medusozoans have an alternating

polyp and jellyfish generations. For active mobility, a free-swimming

jellyfish stage requires specific cell types and organs, including striated

muscles, statocysts, and sophisticated vision systems, which are

missing in corals and sea anemones. Because Anthozoa and

Medusozoa are sister groups, there are two plausible evolutionary

scenarios: the jellyfish stage is a medusozoan-only innovation, or the

jellyfish stage has been lost in anthozoans. Since ancient times,

jellyfish have captivated human attention due to their exquisite

symmetry, acute toxicity, and economic significance. Within Cnidaria,

there is a consistent correlation between significant taxonomic divides

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MENDOZA, AUBREY GALE S.
FINAL EXAM
0755 BIOL 311 LEC
and life-cycle variations. Anthozoan ontogeny is the simplest, forming

a planula, settling, and maturation into a sessile polyp, the adult

stage. Cubozoa, the phylum Cnidaria's most recently recognized class,

comprises species with planulae that settle and mature into sessile

polyps. Following that, the cubopolyp transforms into a single sexual

medusa. Cnidarians have been shown to have far more diversity in

their genomic organization, gene sets, and body plan development

control than previously thought. Many evolutionary trends of the

Bilateria (the development of striated muscles, camera-type eyes, and

clusters of genes with collinear expression) are independently

represented by the cnidarians, with genetic differences within the

species nearly equivalent to variation in the protostomian and

deuterostome clades taken together. The genomes of Aurelia and

Morbakka are a valuable resource for learning about medusozoan

biology, notably the developmental and evolutionary elements of their

complicated life cycles. They also help us better comprehend

evolutionary processes in cnidarians and the animal kingdom as a

whole.

Reference: Medusozoan genomes inform the evolution of the

jellyfish body plan .. (n.d.). Retrieved December 15, 2021, from

https://www.nature.com/articles/s41559-019-0853-y

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MENDOZA, AUBREY GALE S.
FINAL EXAM
0755 BIOL 311 LEC

2. Birds and mammals are both endothermic, and both have four

chambered hearts. Most reptiles

are ectothermic and have three-chambered hearts.

a) Why won’t biologists group birds with mammals? 5 points

b) Why do most biologists now consider birds to be reptiles?

Birds are not classified as either mammals or reptiles in the

animal kingdom; instead, they are classified as a group of vertebrates

known as 'Aves' in the animal kingdom. Birds are not classified as

mammals or reptiles in the animal kingdom. Animals belonging to

the Aves family are all distinguished by the same feature. Animal

kingdom classifications include mammals, reptiles, and aves, all types

of animals. The distinction between mammals and birds is made even

though they share many characteristics, such as being vertebrates,

endothermic, and having four chambers in their hearts. This is due

to the differences in their characteristic features, such as feathers

and beaks, which distinguish them from one another. It is believed

that birds descended from a small, bipedal, feathered dinosaur,

probably endothermic, as evidenced by fossil evidence. The ancestral

amniote was the last common ancestor that both birds and mammals

could trace back to. Birds and mammals both have four-chambered

hearts, which developed separately.

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MENDOZA, AUBREY GALE S.
FINAL EXAM
0755 BIOL 311 LEC
Reference: Bio ch. 19 review Flashcards | Quizlet. (n.d.).

Retrieved December 14, 2021, from

https://quizlet.com/31933553/bio-ch-19-review-flash-cards/

3. Mammals belong to a group of amniotes known as synapsids. Three

major lineages of mammals had emerged by the early Cretaceous

period. In a tabulated form, compare these three lineages to illustrate

their diversity in terms of:

a. Embryonic development

b. How the young are fed

c. Period of gestation

Monotremes Marsupials Placental

Embryonic Although they They are poorly Embryonic
development are egg- developed at development is
laying birth and most in uterus. The
animals, two- of their growth placenta
thirds of occurs as pouch grows
embryonic young. throughout
development pregnancy to
occurs in the nourish the
uterus. It is baby within the
permeable uterus. The
and placenta is
stretchable, made up of
allowing the both mother
embryo and its and embryo
membranes to membranes.
grow before
the egg is
deposited.
How the young Monotreme Some marsupials Until they can
are fed young are fully may create two care for

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MENDOZA, AUBREY GALE S.
FINAL EXAM
0755 BIOL 311 LEC
reliant on milk “different” kinds themselves,
for of milk at the young animals
nourishment, same time, are given milk
and the allowing two and
suckling time is distinct ages of safeguarded
longer than the joeys to swallow by one or more
gestation and separate milk. parents.
incubation Marsupials
periods. generate
colostrum-
fortified milk
during
lactation.
Period of Platypus – They have a four The gestation
gestation 10-14 days to five week period is 31-32
Short-beaked gestation period, days . Larger
echidna – 21- however some litters have
28 days species just 12 shorter
Western days. gestation
long-beaked periods than
echidna – 10 small litters.
days

Reference: Comparative anatomy of neonates of the three major

mammalian . Retrieved December 14, 2021, from

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28960296/

4. Neanderthals are recognizably human but have distinctive facial

features and a stocky build that were evolutionary adaptations to cold,

dry environments. They shared Europe for 10,000 years with Homo

sapiens. Today they no longer exist. Beyond these facts the fate of

Neanderthals has generated much debate. Why did Neanderthals

become extinct? State at least two major factors to explain their fate.

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MENDOZA, AUBREY GALE S.
FINAL EXAM
0755 BIOL 311 LEC
Around 40,000 years ago, Neanderthals went extinct. According

to research published in Nature in 2014, this date is substantially

earlier than previous estimates and is based on new radiocarbon-

dating technologies assessing 40 sites spanning Spain to Russia. In

2017, researchers discovered evidence of continuing Neanderthal

existence in the Iberian Peninsula 37,000 years ago. The Neanderthals

were hominids, near relatives of our species, Homo sapiens (close

enough to allow interbreeding, although the offspring seem to have

had lower fertility, especially if they were male). They arose

throughout western Asia and Europe. They appeared to be well-suited

to the circumstances of the last ice age when significant swaths of

Europe were buried in glaciers. Because their number was less and the

Neanderthal lifestyle was incompatible with hybrids, Neanderthals

would eventually go extinct. They didn't seem to be very numerous at

the end. While it's possible that they came into conflict with sapiens

on occasion, it seems more prudent to suppose that, as all other

hominid species save ours, they died out as environmental

conditions changed. Genocide strikes me as an overly contemporary

term, given that humans back then were still hunter-gatherers, likely

living in nomadic and isolated bands with little motivation to plan a

campaign against Neanderthals, whom they had little reason for to see

as fundamentally different anyhow. Their ears are another reason for

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MENDOZA, AUBREY GALE S.
FINAL EXAM
0755 BIOL 311 LEC
their transformation. Their Eustachian tubes' relatively flat angle

remained unaltered into adulthood, implying they never lost their

increased risk of ear infections. In addition, ear infections can quickly

progress to additional issues, including meningitis, lung infections,

hearing loss, or even pneumonia. However, we still don't know why

they've vanished, so various possibilities might be explored.

Reference: Why did the Neanderthals die out? | Neanderthals |

The Guardian. (n.d.). Retrieved December 15, 2021, from

https://www.theguardian.com/science/2013/jun/02/why-did-

neanderthals-die-out

5. Some genetic studies suggest that the most recent common ancestor

of Homo sapiens that lived outside of Africa spread from Africa about

50,000years ago. Compare this date to the dates of the fossil record.

Can both the genetic results and the dates ascribe to the fossils be

correct? Justify.

Maybe. Genetic data will provide us with a better knowledge of

the origins of modern people through the study of fossil records. For

example, one of the most apparent conclusions drawn from the fossil

record is that modern humans appeared at a particular time and

location based on the fossil record. It will be challenging to establish a

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MENDOZA, AUBREY GALE S.
FINAL EXAM
0755 BIOL 311 LEC
single place of genesis for this outbreak. It seems that modern

humans originated in Africa around 200 000 years ago, with the

following advancements of modern humans occurring throughout the

world due to their spread from Africa. Homo sapiens may have

established colonies outside of Africa as early as 1150 years ago. On

the other hand, such populations may have no descendants remaining

today. In general, it is believed that all current humans are descended

from Africans who dispersed from Africa around 50,000 years ago.

According to the recent African origin pattern, the anatomically

modern humans living outside of Africa are descended from a

population of Homo sapiens that migrated from East Africa

approximately 70-50,000 years ago and spread along the southern

coasts of Asia and Oceania by about 50,000 years ago, according to

the recent African origin pattern. In light of the current fossil record, it

appears that the prediction of modern humans arising first in Africa is

upheld and that the kind of regional coalescence anticipated by some

types of multiregional evolution is less plausible. As indicated

subsequently in specific articles, genetic evidence supports an

original African origin and other theories.

Reference: Ancient fossils question human family tree – Light Years -

CNN.com .. (n.d.). Retrieved December 16, 2021, from

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MENDOZA, AUBREY GALE S.
FINAL EXAM
0755 BIOL 311 LEC
https://lightyears.blogs.cnn.com/2011/09/08/ancient-fossils-question-

human-family-tree/

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MENDOZA, AUBREY GALE S.
FINAL EXAM
0755 BIOL 311 LEC

Grammarly results :

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