Bio homework – wk8/9

1. Pick one of the megafauna animals that has living relatives:

The mammoth (living relatives are various species of elephants)

 Identify a fossil site where fossils of that animal were found (site listed on p
389-390): Mammoth fossils have been in the Black Hills of South Dakota
preserved in a sink hole that formed 140,000 y.a.

 How has evolution changed that animal? Due to the abrupt changes in climate
and the food sources available, the mammoth was unable to adapt as the species
did not have enough time to. Due to the climate getting warmer and wetter,
these conditions made it hard for the mammoth to survive due to its adaptations
to cool and dry climates. The nutritious food sources for the mammoth and other
megafauna animals were replaced by shrubs and trees due to this climate
change. Species that diverged from the mammoth such as elephants were able
to adapt to harsher climates and change their diets to suit certain living
conditions.

 How might changes in climate explain that evolutionary change? Changes in

climate account for evolutionary changes and adaptations that occur in extant
species as well as accounting for the extinction of certain species. Due to the
abrupt changes in climate (wetter/warmer), this not only selected against certain
physical adaptations the mammoth had developed, but also affected the food
sources that they relied on. Thus, the mammoth population died out and
became extinct due to a limited time of being able to evolve. However, the
elephant population had more time to adapt and change their diets as well as
develop new structural/behavioural adaptations to suit new conditions.