ANTHROPOLOGY 1Quiz 3 acceptable answers

1. Mitochondrial DNA
a. is found in both males and females.
b. is not passed on by fathers to their offspring.
c. has been used to trace modern human ancestry to a single ancient African woman.
d. does not recombine sexually.
e. All of the above are true.
2. What are two important criteria used for defining and constructing a cladogram?
Shared derived traits (homologous and similar) - vs - derived divergent traits
(homologous but differently modified)
Cladistic logic:
a. Identify traits likely to be homologous in different species. [shared derived
traits]
b. Treat the species with the least number of shared derived traits with any other
species being compared as the outgroup
c. Treat traits shared in common in the others as likely to be inherited from a
common ancestor.
d. Treat traits that appear together in each of many different species as more
reliable indicators of shared common ancestry than any individual shared trait.
Which of these criteria is used to predict that two species have a last common ancestor?
c. shared derived traits
In genetic cladograms what additional information besides numbers of gene differences
is necessary to estimate a date for a last common ancestor?
Independent fossil-geological evidence of absolute dating of a time before and after
a lineage split that has been predicted cladistically; particularly near the bottom of
the cladogram (e.g. outgroup split). For example,
3. The founder effect results when a few individuals colonize an isolated environment,
such as an island, where there are no competitors. This is a common cause of genetic drift,
but often in two opposed directions at different times.
a. Why does this initially produce a significant reduction of genetic variety?
b. Why do later generations often show increased variety of traits?
The founder population is initially genetically limited to the fraction of the species
genome represented in the founding individuals and then becomes even more
genetically homogenous due to inbreeding which results in progressive loss of
genetic variety because in each mating 50% of genes from each parent are not
passed down.
4. What are two evolutionary costs of sexual reproduction? (as compared to asexual
reproduction, e.g. budding or parthenogenesis)

Any two of
Only 50% of genes passed down in each reproduction.
The very high probability that some of your genes will not be passed down to any
offspring.
The break-up of successful genetic combinations.
Time and energy spent finding and or competing for mates.
The probability that no mate will be found, or that one will lose in competition.
The food and other resources used up by 50% of the population (males) that wont
directly contribute to offspring generation.
5. What is anisogamy? What form of selection caused it to evolve?
Different size and/or features exhibited by gametes: e.g. sperm vs egg. Disruptive
selection, because the intermediate compromise-form is selected against.
6. What conditions should select for hermaphroditic reproduction (an individual who
produces both kinds of gametes)? Why?
Difficulty locating a mate in a sexual species, either because of mobility limitations
or because of intrinsically low probability of encountering another individual of
your same species. Having the possibility of producing both kinds of sexual
gametes doubles the probability of locating a mate. Every same species encounter
is a potential mating opportunity.
7. Can sexual selection ever work to produce traits that are disadvantageous for the
individual who exhibits them? Explain.
Yes. It can often produce handicap traits, like the long tails and exaggerated
displays of male widow birds that increase the probability of predation but also
increase the probability of mating. Many individuals perish without mating but a
few are highly successful reproducers.
8. What is sexual dimorphism? Give an example.
Divergent physical (and behavioral) traits in the two sexes. Peacock tails, larger
size of males in elephant seals, fighting between male goats, deer, rams, lions, etc.
9. Is monogamous reproduction more common in birds or in mammals? Why?
Birds.
Mammal females are biologically predisposed to contribute extensive energetic
investment in offspring via gestation and lactation. This makes it more likely that
mammalian males can successfully reproduce with minimal investment in
offspring.
Bird females do invest more in the earliest egg-production phase but after that
males and females can contribute equally. Tree-dwelling nesting birds also
demand care for an extended period after hatching as they develop the ability to fly,
and so biparental care is also more important because of competing demands of
incubation-protection and foraging-feeding.
10. What is the degree of relatedness r between
a. two first cousins
1/8

b. half-brothers (e.g. brothers who share the same mother but different fathers)
1/4
c. two children from an incestuous union between a half-brother and half-sister
5/8
11. How can a male honey bee (a drone) have a grandfather but not a father?
He is haploid and produced from an unfertilized ovum, thus has 50% of mothers
genes and no paternal genes, but mother (queen) is diploid and got 50% of her
genes from her father. So the drone recieved approx 50% of his genes from his
maternal grandfather.