Inquiry Sequence on Evolution

AP Biology
Overview
In this inquiry sequence, students will carry out three parts of an investigation into the
evolutionary relatedness of lizards in the Caribbean. Students will use data to 1) Group eight
lizard species into ecomorphs, 2) Propose the evolutionary relationships of the lizard species on
different Caribbean Islands, and how their evolution relates to their geographic distribution, and
3) Describe ways that the habitat may influence lizard evolution in the area. My main focus for
this report is on the PEOE process happening to answer question 2 above. Students will use
phylogenetic trees and information about the distribution of the species and ecomorphs to
explain how convergent evolution is happening on the different islands. I will lead short class
discussions to introduce the three lessons, but other than that I will be helping individuals as
needed.

Learning Goals
Big Ideas
The process of evolution drives the diversity and unity of life (AP Biology Course and
Exam Guide Big Idea 1). It has explanatory power for questions ranging from how there got to
be so many different organisms on earth, to why some organisms look more similar to each other
than to others. Evolution is driven by natural selection, random processes such as drift, and
environmental changes, as well as catastrophic natural and human-induced events (AP Biology
Course and Exam Guide Big Idea 1). All of these processes indirectly influence the genetic
makeup of a population over time by acting on the preexisting variation in the populations gene
pool. When one of the factors driving evolution is occurring in a population, the variation of
genes in the gene pool changes, and over time, the changes can accumulate. An evolving
population can be compared to a hypothetical one in Hardy-Weinberg Equilibrium, where the
variation in the gene pool is constant over time.
Natural selection is the major driving mechanism of evolution; the essential features of
the mechanism contribute to the change in the genetic makeup of a population over time.
Darwins theory of natural selection states that inheritable variations occur in individuals in a
population. Due to competition for resources that are often limited, individuals with more
favorable variations or phenotypes are more likely to survive and produce more offspring, thus
passing traits to subsequent generations (AP Biology Course and Exam Guide 1.A.2). Even
though selection acts on individuals, it is the ratio of traits that get passed on to the next
generation, which happens at the population level, that characterizes evolution by natural
selection. This process is supported by evidence from many scientific disciplines, including
geology, physical science, as well as biochemical, morphological, and genetic information from
existing and extinct organisms. (AP Biology Course and Exam Guide 1.A.4).
The source of variance in a population of organisms, as well as the organizational basis of
all living systems, is heritable genetic information. This information is stored and passed to the

subsequent generation via DNA. The chemical structures of both DNA and RNA provide
mechanisms that ensure information is preserved and passed to subsequent generations (AP
Biology Course and Exam Guide 3.A.1). Mistakes made in the processes involving DNA and
RNA, among other factors, can cause genetic mutations conferring heritable, original traits to the
organism.
The end result of the accumulation of genetic changes in a population over time is
macroevolution, or evolution happening at the species level or higher. New species arise when
two populations diverge from a common ancestor and become reproductively isolated. Although
speciation can occur by different processes, reproductive isolation must be maintained for a
species to remain distinct. (AP Biology Course and Exam Guide 1.C). Macroevolution explains
how organisms share many conserved core processes and features. Phylogenetic trees serve as
dynamic models that show common ancestry, and they can represent both acquired traits and
those lost during evolution. (AP Biology Course and Exam Guide 1.A.4 and 1.B.2).

Student Practices
Engaging in argument from evidence (SP 5.3)
Students will use data in three different parts of the inquiry sequence to 1) Group eight
lizard species into ecomorphs, 2) Propose the evolutionary relationships of the lizard species on
different Caribbean Islands, and how their evolution relates to their geographic distribution, and
3) Describe ways that the habit may influence lizard evolution in the area.
The student can analyze data to identify patterns or relationships (SP 5.1)
First, students will collect two types of data, make calculations, and graph the results in
order to offer insight into the lizard groupings. Then, they will compare DNA sequences to infer
the relatedness of the species. Finally, they will collect analyze data from a controlled
experiment involving the lizards habitat.

Performance Expectations for Student Learning

Performance Expectation
AP Performance Expectation(s)
1. (LO 1.18) The student is able to evaluate evidence provided by a data set
in conjunction with a phylogenetic tree or a simple cladogram to determine
evolutionary history and speciation
2. (LO 1.12) The student is able to connect scientific evidence from many
scientific disciplines to support the modern concept of evolution.
Specific Lesson Objective(s)
Students will collect and analyze three types of data to investigate the
evolution of anole lizards.

Associated AP
Practice
Analyzing data
and evaluating
evidence (#5)
Analyzing data
and evaluating
evidence (#5)
Collecting and
analyzing data

2. Students will use data to 1) Group eight lizard species into ecomorphs, 2)
Propose the evolutionary relationships of the lizard species on different
Caribbean Islands, and 3) Describe ways that the habit may influence lizard
evolution in the area.

(#5)
Working with
scientific
explanations (#6)

Lesson Plans (1-3)

Lesson 1 Activities
Lesson 1 Materials
Handouts: LizardModule1_Handout.docx
Other materials: The virtual lab can be found at: http://www.hhmi.org/biointeractive/lizardevolution-virtual-lab
Lesson 1 Introduction (10 minutes)
First, I will introduce the inquiry sequence by explaining that it is a culminating project
incorporating many of the ideas we have talked about throughout the unit, in order to answer
questions about the evolution of lizards in the Caribbean islands. Ill say that we will be
comparing the morphology of different species to make inferences about their relatedness,
interpreting phylogenetic trees to understand how the lizards evolved, and carrying out a virtual
investigation to study the effects of natural selection on the lizards.
Then, I will explain two important things that students need to know about working in the
virtual lab. They should work on the same computer each day, since the program saves their
progress automatically by machine, and they should be patient with the old computers because it
is a pretty big task to run, and clicking a lot to rush through load time may make things worse.
Finally, we will watch the introduction video together and then answer the two questions,
which are Why are there so many species of anoles? And how did they evolve? After the class
has shared their ideas, I will ask what kind of data we would need to collect to answer these
questions.
Lesson 1 Main Teaching Activities (~60 minutes)
In this module, students make their first predictions about how the lizard species are grouped
into ecomorphs, based on phenotypic similarities. A pattern is that species that look similar are
more likely to live under similar ecological conditions, but their predictions are refined as they
gather more morphological information. They conclude by watching a short video comparing
the habitats of the different ecomorphs, and then answer seven assessment questions that they
can print and turn in.

Lesson 1 Conclusion (8 minutes)

After completing module 1, I will have students make predictions about the questions in
module 2. This will be on a handout (LizardModule1_handout.docx) that they staple to their
printed assessment questions.

Lesson 2 Activities
Lesson 2 Materials
Handout: LizardModule2_Handout.docx
Other materials: The virtual lab can be found at: http://www.hhmi.org/biointeractive/lizardevolution-virtual-lab
Lesson 2 Introduction (5 minutes)
I plan on students beginning module 2 about a quarter of the way to halfway through the
second day. That means that when it seems like most students have finished module 1, we will
stop and introduce module 2. We will watch the introductory video for module 2, which shows
how all four ecomorphs are represented on each of the different islands. Then it asks the
question, Did the ecomorphs evolve on one island, and then spread to other islands, or did they
evolve separately on each island?. We will try to answer this question as a group. I expect
some students to think the ecomorphs evolved on one island, and others to think they evolved
separately on the different islands, because they dont have complete enough information to
know for sure. We will only have morphological data, so this discussion will be mostly about
identifying what additional data we would need to gather in order to answer the question.
Lesson 2 Main Teaching Activities (~60 minutes)
Lesson 2 Main Teaching Activities (~60 minutes)
The computers in the library do not have a fast enough connection to handle the DNA
sequence comparison in Module 2. That means that for Modules 2 and 3, we will have to
complete them as a group using my laptop on the big screen. In Module 2, we will use genetic
sequencing to infer the evolutionary relationships between the lizard species, and to investigate
whether the ecomorphs evolved separately on the islands, or all on one island. We will
eventually map the species ecomorph and island onto the tree, and use this analysis to justify an
explanation of how the lizards evolved. The pattern they will see is that species on the same
island are more closely related than species of the same ecomorph. This module also ends with
assessment questions that students will answer and turn in.

Lesson 2 Conclusion (8 minutes)

After completing module 2, students will write a paragraph answering the following
question, Explain how using the two phylogenetic trees (one showing the ecomorphs and
one showing the island for each species) can provide evidence that the lizards on different
islands evolved similar traits independently.. These questions will ask them to explain the
results they observed in the module.

Lesson 3 Activities
Lesson 3 Materials
Other materials: The virtual lab can be found at:
http://www.hhmi.org/biointeractive/lizard-evolution-virtual-lab
Lesson 3 Introduction (8 minutes)
We will begin Lesson 3 with a recap of the question that ended Module 2 (Explain how using
the two phylogenetic trees (one showing the ecomorphs and one showing the island for each
species) can provide evidence that the lizards on different islands evolved similar traits
independently.) As we summarize what we did on Tuesday, I will be looking out for a
transition into talking about the lizards habitat. A student will probably talk about how the
habitats on the islands were similar, allowing convergent evolution, and I can use that to ask
more about how habitats would effect a species phenotype, which is the topic of module 3. If
a student does not bring up the lizards habitat, then I will ask how is it that lizards that are
very far apart could have evolved similar characteristics?.
Lesson 3 Main Teaching Activities (~60 minutes)
This module begins with a question that is to be answered with a controlled experiment. The
question asks, What happens when lizards that belong to a particular ecomorph group are
placed in a different habitat?. We are investigating this question to help understand the role
of evolution in shaping the phenotypic differences we have observed in lizards throughout the
virtual lab. We will collect and analyze data from the experiment to see how a changed habitat
influences lizard phenotypes. The observation here is that changing the lizards habitat results
in changes in the phenotype of the lizards over generations. At the end of the module, there
are assessment questions for students to answer and turn in.
Lesson 3 Conclusion (10 minutes)
After answering the modules assessment questions, I will ask them to write a short
paragraph answering the following question, Select a characteristic of this organism that has
changed as an adaptation to it's environment, and explain the role of the environment in the
development of this characteristic from its ancestral form.. We may need to watch the
introductory video for module 2 again as they are writing their answers, as this video gives many
examples of the ecomorphs different adaptations.
Then, I will ask them to revisit the two questions that we asked at the beginning of the virtual
lab, and have them write a paragraph that answers them using data from the lab. Lastly, I will
ask them to write a paragraph explaining what kinds of data we had to collect to answer our
questions, and how it provides evidence for our answers.