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Four species of finches live in an ecosystem. The finches differ by beak size:Darwin's Finches by John Gould (CC0)About 100 years ago, food was abundant and varied in the ecosystem. The finches with the smallest beaks ate only small, soft, easy-to-access seeds. The finches with the largest beaks ate the small, soft seeds, but could also eat large, hard nuts and seeds, as their beaks could easily crack open the food source. All four species thrived and faced very little competition for food sources.About 50 years ago, the ecosystem experienced a massive, long-term drought. During the period of drought, small, soft seeds became scarce and eventually non-existent, as they dried out easily in the new conditions. Large, hard nuts and seeds remained relatively available, and the hard outer shells prevented the inner portions from drying out.Predict what the majority of the finches looked like in the ecosystem over time.Elimination ToolSelect one answerATime period Species Still Remaining in Large Numbers100 years ago 1, 2, 3, 450 years ago 1, 2, 3, 4Today 1, 2, 3, 4BTime period Species Still Remaining in Large Numbers100 years ago 1, 2, 3, 450 years ago 1, 2Today 1, 2CTime period Species Still Remaining in Large Numbers100 years ago 1, 2, 3, 450 years ago 3, 4Today 3, 4DTime period Species Still Remaining in Large Numbers100 years ago 1, 2, 3, 450 years ago 1, 2, 3, 4Today 1, 2Skip For No

Question

Four species of finches live in an ecosystem. The finches differ by beak size:Darwin's Finches by John Gould (CC0)About 100 years ago, food was abundant and varied in the ecosystem. The finches with the smallest beaks ate only small, soft, easy-to-access seeds. The finches with the largest beaks ate the small, soft seeds, but could also eat large, hard nuts and seeds, as their beaks could easily crack open the food source. All four species thrived and faced very little competition for food sources.About 50 years ago, the ecosystem experienced a massive, long-term drought. During the period of drought, small, soft seeds became scarce and eventually non-existent, as they dried out easily in the new conditions. Large, hard nuts and seeds remained relatively available, and the hard outer shells prevented the inner portions from drying out.Predict what the majority of the finches looked like in the ecosystem over time.Elimination ToolSelect one answerATime period Species Still Remaining in Large Numbers100 years ago 1, 2, 3, 450 years ago 1, 2, 3, 4Today 1, 2, 3, 4BTime period Species Still Remaining in Large Numbers100 years ago 1, 2, 3, 450 years ago 1, 2Today 1, 2CTime period Species Still Remaining in Large Numbers100 years ago 1, 2, 3, 450 years ago 3, 4Today 3, 4DTime period Species Still Remaining in Large Numbers100 years ago 1, 2, 3, 450 years ago 1, 2, 3, 4Today 1, 2Skip For No

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Solution

The correct answer would be C.

100 years ago, all four species of finches were thriving because food was abundant and varied. However, 50 years ago, the ecosystem experienced a massive, long-term drought. The small, soft seeds that the finches with the smallest beaks ate became scarce and eventually non-existent. This would have made it difficult for these finches to survive, leading to a decrease in their numbers.

On the other hand, the finches with the largest beaks could also eat large, hard nuts and seeds, which remained relatively available. Therefore, these finches would have been able to survive and maintain their numbers.

So, over time, the majority of the finches in the ecosystem would have been those with the largest beaks that could eat the large, hard nuts and seeds. This is why the answer is C:

Time period Species Still Remaining in Large Numbers 100 years ago 1, 2, 3, 4 50 years ago 3, 4 Today 3, 4

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Similar Questions

What did Darwin observe about the finches he collected from the Galápagos Islands?a. They all had identical beak shapesb. They were unrelated to each otherc. They evolved from South American speciesd. They had different beak shapes suited to their diet

After a drought, the only species of tree that survived had very large seeds. Many generations later, the finches with largest beaks increased in number and the ones with smaller and medium-sized beaks decreased in number.How is this BEST explained?Elimination ToolSelect one answerAThe finches with small and medium beaks had to work harder than those with larger beaks to crack open the large seeds. The more they used their beaks, the larger their beaks became, so they were able to obtain enough food to survive, reproduce, and pass the traits of large beaks to the next generation.BThe finches with the large beaks were better at eating the large seeds than those with smaller beaks, so only the birds with large beaks obtained enough food to survive, reproduce, and pass the trait of large beaks to the next generation.CThe finches with smallest beaks grew their beaks so that they would be better able to eat the large seeds and get enough food to survive, reproduce, and pass the trait of large beaks on to the next generation.DIt was a chance occurrence that all the individual finches’ beaks in the next generation were larger. Therefore, they were able to eat the large seeds and get enough food to survive, reproduce, and pass the trait of large beaks to the next generation.

Charles Darwin consulted John Gould about the birds that he had collected on the Galápagos Islands. Gould identified 13 distinct types of finches based on the birds'Multiple choice question.feet.wings.stomach contents.bills.

After the drought of 1977, researchers hypothesised that on the Galápagos Island Daphne Major, medium ground finches with large, deep beaks survived better than those with smaller beaks because they could more easily crack and eat the tough Tribulus cistoides fruits. A tourist company sets up reliable feeding stations with a variety of bird seeds (different types and sizes) so that tourists can get a better look at the finches. Which of these events is now most likely to occur to finch beaks on this island?Question 4Select one:a.evolution of yet larger, deeper beaks over time, until all birds have relatively large, deep beaksb.evolution of smaller, pointier beaks over time, until all birds have relatively small, pointy beaksc.increased variation in beak size and shape over timed.no change in beak size and shape over timeClear my choice

Charles Darwin observed several species of finches on the Galápagos Islands, each with distinct beak shapes and sizes. These differences appeared to be adaptations to the specific types of food available on each island. For example, finches on islands with abundant hard seeds had stronger, thicker beaks, while those on islands with insects had thinner, sharper beaks.Which of the following observations by Darwin most directly led to his theory of natural selection?Question 2Answera.Variation in Traitsb.Adaptation to the Environmentc.Overproduction of Offspringd.Inheritance of Traits

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