Question

Use the drop-down menus to match each example to the fossil topic discussed, then to show how the fossil record gives evidence of evolution.


The fossil record matches the geologic record.

The oldest forms of life were much more simple than the newest forms of life.

A fossil called Tiktaalik has been found to be halfway between a fish and the earliest land animals.

Answer 1

- The fossil record matches the geologic record.
- Topic: fossils occur in rock layers in chronological order (law of superposition / geologic strata).
- How this shows evidence of evolution: older (deeper) layers contain older, simpler organisms and newer layers contain more recent forms, demonstrating a time-ordered sequence of change in life through Earth’s history.

- The oldest forms of life were much more simple than the newest forms of life.
- Topic: increasing complexity and change through time.
- How this shows evidence of evolution: the trend from simple to more complex and diverse organisms across the fossil record indicates descent with modification rather than all forms appearing at once.

- A fossil called Tiktaalik has been found to be halfway between a fish and the earliest land animals.
- Topic: transitional (intermediate) fossil.
- How this shows evidence of evolution: Tiktaalik has both fish-like (scales, fins) and tetrapod-like (wrist bones, neck) features, providing a morphological “missing link” that documents an evolutionary transition from fish to land vertebrates.