Herpetology Exam 1 Review
1. Herpetology: study of reptiles and amphibians, excluding birds
2. All amphibians, reptiles, turtles, and crocodilians belong to:: Domain Eu- karya
Kingdom Animalia Phylum
Chordata Subphylum
Vertebrata
3. Amphibians belong to the class .: Amphibia
4. Traditionally, crocodilians, turtles, tuataras, snakes, and lizards belonged to the class .:
Reptilia
5. are closely related.: Snakes and Lizards
6. Traditionally, birds belonged to the class Aves; but many biologists now consider them.:
reptiles
7. The reluctance to accept birds as reptiles is the reason that some biologists
consider turtles and crocodilians to be reptiles.: do not
8. are more related to birds than snakes and lizards.:
Turtles and crocodilians
9. How do birds differ from their "reptile" relatives?: Birds are endothermic while reptiles are
ectothermic.
Birds have feathers. (Modified scales) Birds
fly.
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, Herpetology Exam 1 Review
They have different types of amniotic eggs.
Development of the nervous system and physiological adaptations. (response to endothermy and flight)
10.Birds are the closest relatives to .: crocodiles
11.Why lump amphibians and reptiles?: Both groups are ectothermic tetrapods (non-fish
vertebrates)
12.Ectothermy: Maintaining body temperature by external mechanisms.
-Basking in the sun
-Resting on a warm surface
-Moving to cool, shaded places
13.Endothermy requires...: metabolic energy for physiological temperature con- trol.
14.Body temperature fluctuates more in animals.: ectothermic
15.What are the advantages of ectothermy?: Does not require food energy for temperature
regulation (lower metabolic rates)
Less energy is needed when the body temperature drops. Greatly reduces the
daily need for food.
Increases efficiency of growth and reproduction (about 25x more than endotherms)
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, Herpetology Exam 1 Review
16.What are the disadvantages of ectothermy?: Difficult to maintain the ideal body temperature.
Performance level (like capturing food or escaping predation) is often below optimal level.
Activity patterns are dictated by environmental conditions, daily and seasonally.
17.How does body size effect ectothermy?: Small animals use proportionately more energy than
larger animals. Coupled with thermoregulatory needs, small endotherms require a tremendous amounts
of energy, far more than an ectotherm.
18.Due to ectothermy there are...: far more small herps than birds or mammals; and the smallest
herp species are much smaller. This is because ectothermy enables niche exploitation.
19.Why is the number of extant species increasing?: Due to modern molecular genetic techniques.
20.What are the two groups that determine the taxonomic relationships of different groups
of animals?: SSAR and AOS
21. more readily recognize new species than ornitholo- gists or
mammalogists.: Herpetologists
22.Biological Species Concept (BSC): Species are groups of interbreeding nat- ural populations that
are reproductively isolated from other such groups. Considers groups that interbreed under normal
conditions.
23.Many species consist of subspecies that differ morphologically but readily interbreed in the
where they come in contact.: zone of intergradation
24.Phylogenetic Species Concept (PSC): Species are smallest aggregation of organisms that share a
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1. Herpetology: study of reptiles and amphibians, excluding birds
2. All amphibians, reptiles, turtles, and crocodilians belong to:: Domain Eu- karya
Kingdom Animalia Phylum
Chordata Subphylum
Vertebrata
3. Amphibians belong to the class .: Amphibia
4. Traditionally, crocodilians, turtles, tuataras, snakes, and lizards belonged to the class .:
Reptilia
5. are closely related.: Snakes and Lizards
6. Traditionally, birds belonged to the class Aves; but many biologists now consider them.:
reptiles
7. The reluctance to accept birds as reptiles is the reason that some biologists
consider turtles and crocodilians to be reptiles.: do not
8. are more related to birds than snakes and lizards.:
Turtles and crocodilians
9. How do birds differ from their "reptile" relatives?: Birds are endothermic while reptiles are
ectothermic.
Birds have feathers. (Modified scales) Birds
fly.
1/
, Herpetology Exam 1 Review
They have different types of amniotic eggs.
Development of the nervous system and physiological adaptations. (response to endothermy and flight)
10.Birds are the closest relatives to .: crocodiles
11.Why lump amphibians and reptiles?: Both groups are ectothermic tetrapods (non-fish
vertebrates)
12.Ectothermy: Maintaining body temperature by external mechanisms.
-Basking in the sun
-Resting on a warm surface
-Moving to cool, shaded places
13.Endothermy requires...: metabolic energy for physiological temperature con- trol.
14.Body temperature fluctuates more in animals.: ectothermic
15.What are the advantages of ectothermy?: Does not require food energy for temperature
regulation (lower metabolic rates)
Less energy is needed when the body temperature drops. Greatly reduces the
daily need for food.
Increases efficiency of growth and reproduction (about 25x more than endotherms)
2/
, Herpetology Exam 1 Review
16.What are the disadvantages of ectothermy?: Difficult to maintain the ideal body temperature.
Performance level (like capturing food or escaping predation) is often below optimal level.
Activity patterns are dictated by environmental conditions, daily and seasonally.
17.How does body size effect ectothermy?: Small animals use proportionately more energy than
larger animals. Coupled with thermoregulatory needs, small endotherms require a tremendous amounts
of energy, far more than an ectotherm.
18.Due to ectothermy there are...: far more small herps than birds or mammals; and the smallest
herp species are much smaller. This is because ectothermy enables niche exploitation.
19.Why is the number of extant species increasing?: Due to modern molecular genetic techniques.
20.What are the two groups that determine the taxonomic relationships of different groups
of animals?: SSAR and AOS
21. more readily recognize new species than ornitholo- gists or
mammalogists.: Herpetologists
22.Biological Species Concept (BSC): Species are groups of interbreeding nat- ural populations that
are reproductively isolated from other such groups. Considers groups that interbreed under normal
conditions.
23.Many species consist of subspecies that differ morphologically but readily interbreed in the
where they come in contact.: zone of intergradation
24.Phylogenetic Species Concept (PSC): Species are smallest aggregation of organisms that share a
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