Question

After examining the fossil record, scientists have determined that scorpions today are much smaller than their extinct ancestors. For example, Jaekelopterus rhenaniae, a giant scoprtion species that lived 255 million to 460 million years ago was 2.5 meters long. Which of the following conclusions is supported by this information?
A. scorpions living today have increased their numbers since they first appeared
B. scorpions in the fossil record are smaller than their descendants are
C. scorpions have changed as a result of natural selection
D. scorpions do not appear in their original state in the fossil record

Answer 1

Answer: C. scorpions have changed as a result of natural selection

Explanation:

The text tells us that scorpions today are now smaller than they were in the past. This means that the scorpions have changed since then i.e. they have evolved.

The primary reason for evolution is natural selection which refers to a situation whereby only the organisms that are better adapted in their species survive.

The conclusion that can be drawn from this research therefore is that we have smaller scorpions today because they stood a better chance of survival than the larger ones and so survived whilst the larger ones died out.