Paleontology

15 Points Per Correct Answer - No time limit  

1. Which of the following geologic periods is the oldest, chronologically? Permian Jurassic Cambrian Paleocene

2. This name describes primitive mammals that still lay eggs. Common throughout the Mesozoic, there are now only two families. Placental Monotreme Marsupial Multiberculate

3. This name used to refer to all large carnivorous dinosaurs, now it is only used to describe allosaurs and their close relatives. Spinosaur Archosaur Carnosaur Tyrannosaur

4. Therapsids were warm blooded reptiles that lived during the Permian and Triassic periods. They are the ancestors of mammals, but which type of therapsid are mammals directly descended from? Cynodont Dicynodont Theriodont Pelycosaur

5. What feature of reptiles make them inherently superior to amphibians as terrestrial animals? Amniotic Egg Specialized Teeth Scaly Skin Higher Intellegence

6. This name refers to one of the most ancient and successful of predatory fish. Pike Barracuda Ghar Shark

7. Which of the following genera is NOT a dinosaur? Ornithosuchus Pterodactylus Suchomimus Diplodocus

8. After the mass extinction that took place sixty five million years ago, the descendants of dinosaurs never again dominated any important terrestrial predator niche. Answer: (True or False)

9. In most respects the extinct marsupial thylacine of Tasmania closely resembles mamalian carnivores elswhere, but they are not closely related. This is an example of what kind of evolution? Divergent Coincidental Rapid Convergent

10. Ammonites, cephalopod mollusks that used to abound in the oceans until the great Cretaceous extinction, are most closely related to which living mollusk? Cuttlefish Nautilus Octopus Squid