Free Darwinism MCQs with Answers

• A. Overproduction of offspring
• B. Struggle for existence
• C. Inheritance of characters acquired during life
• D. Survival of the fittest

Explanation: Inheritance of acquired characters is Lamarck's proposal, not Darwin's, and it is the standard distractor in this question.

• A. Galapagos Islands
• B. Hawaiian Islands
• C. Canary Islands
• D. Maldive Islands

Explanation: During the voyage of HMS Beagle Darwin found that each island of the Galapagos group carried finches whose beaks matched the food…

• A. Philosophie Zoologique
• B. The Origin of Species
• C. Systema Naturae
• D. Principles of Geology

Explanation: The Origin of Species was published in 1859 and set out both the evidence for common descent and natural selection as its mechanism.

• A. genetic drift
• B. artificial selection
• C. inheritance of an acquired character
• D. natural selection

Explanation: Soot darkened the tree trunks, so pale moths became conspicuous to birds while the dark variant was camouflaged, and the frequency of the…

• A. why more offspring are produced than can survive
• B. how variations arise and how they are passed on
• C. the struggle for existence between individuals
• D. the geographical distribution of related species

Explanation: Darwin had no knowledge of genes, so although he built his whole argument on heritable variation he could not say where variation came…

• A. mutation and genetic recombination
• B. use and disuse of organs
• C. the needs felt by the organism
• D. the direct action of the environment on the gametes

Explanation: The modern synthesis keeps Darwin's natural selection and adds genetics: mutation creates new alleles and sexual reproduction shuffles…

• A. natural selection
• B. genetic drift
• C. artificial selection
• D. adaptive radiation

Explanation: Here a human being, not the environment, decides which individuals reproduce, and the chosen character is one that suits us rather than…

• A. bacteria learning to resist the drug during exposure
• B. the antibiotic causing the resistance mutation to occur
• C. each bacterium passing on resistance it acquired in its own lifetime
• D. survival and multiplication of resistant mutants already present in the population

Explanation: Resistance mutations arise at random before the drug is ever met, and the antibiotic then kills the sensitive majority, leaving the rare…

• A. Directional selection
• B. Stabilizing selection
• C. Disruptive selection
• D. Genetic drift

Explanation: Industrial melanism demonstrates directional selection, where the dark phenotype became favored in polluted environments.

• A. Natural selection
• B. Genetic drift
• C. Gene flow
• D. Mutation

Explanation: The bottleneck effect is genetic drift caused by a drastic reduction in population size, reducing genetic diversity.

• A. Inheritance of acquired traits
• B. Use and disuse of organs
• C. Species never change
• D. Evolution occurs through gradual accumulation of adaptation through successive generations

Explanation: Darwin argued that individuals vary, that more are born than can survive, and that those better suited leave more offspring, so favourable…

• A. Struggle for existence
• B. Descent with modification
• C. Inheritance of acquired characteristics
• D. Production of more individuals than the environment can support

Explanation: The correct answer is Struggle for existence. This aspect of Darwin's theory is depicted in the diagram by illustrating the competition…

• A. Struggle for existence
• B. Survival of fittest
• C. Natural selection
• D. Evolution

Explanation: When there are more individuals in a population than the environment can support, competition for limited resources such as food, water…

• A. Darwin's natural selection
• B. Lamarck's theory
• C. Hardy-Weinberg theorem
• D. Weinberg's principle

Explanation: Adapting to Environments. Through evolution, species adapt over time to become better suited to their environments.

• A. Essay on population by Malthus
• B. Lamarck's theory
• C. L. Millers evidence for origin of life
• D. Mendel's paper on inheritance Cortana

Explanation: Option A is correct since Charles Darwin was greatly influenced by the idea of Malthus on population control.

• A. 1857
• B. 1877
• C. 1836
• D. 1833

Explanation: There Darwin spent considerable time ashore collecting plants and animals.

• A. Hardy-Weinberg
• B. Alfred Wallace
• C. Lyell
• D. Mathus

Explanation: Alfred Wallace was a contemporary of Charles Darwin and independently arrived at the theory of natural selection.

• A. Origin of life
• B. Extinction of individual organs
• C. Arising of new species
• D. Formation of organisms

Explanation: Darwin's theory of evolution by natural selection primarily focuses on how new species arise through processes that increase the…

• A. Geographical distribution of species
• B. Fossil record
• C. Population genetics
• D. Geographical distribution of species and fossil record

Explanation: Darwin's theory of evolution was primarily based on evidence from the geographical distribution of species and the fossil record.

• A. Survival of the fittest
• B. The process by which individuals with advantageous traits are more likely to survive and reproduce
• C. Those who eat better, are healthier, and live longer are the most fit within a population
• D. Preservation of traits that lead to increased survival and reproduction

Explanation: Natural selection is a fundamental mechanism of evolution, where individuals with traits that enhance their ability to survive and…