Evolution of Whales
Summary
The students read two articles on the evolution of whales and search
the web. The students' writing assignment requires them to outline the
evolution of whales using major fossil finds. Students start with
Pakicetidae and end with the appearance of Mysticeti and Odontoceti
lines.
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Context
Audience
The assignment used in my History of Life honors geology class. It is the second class in the general education science sequence. Most students are non-science majors.
Skills and concepts that students must have mastered
They understand the concepts of natural selection and descent with modification. They have had several lectures on mammal evolution and a lecture on modern whales.
How the activity is situated in the course
This is a stand alone exercise that support lecture material on mammal evolution. This is last of four writing assignments in the class.
Goals
Content/concepts goals for this activity
The students use the fossils to trace the evolution of whales from land
dwelling animals to aquatic beasts. Using the fossils, the students
gain a better understanding of the Darwin's idea of "Descent with
Modification."
Higher order thinking skills goals for this activity
The assignment involves analysis of fossil data and chemical proxy information to illustrate the concept of evolution.
Other skills goals for this activity
Writing and searching the web.
Description of the activity/assignment
For this written assignment, the students outline the evolution of
whales from land dwelling animals to aquatic beasts. Rather than an
essay, they produce a detailed outline of the major modifications that
occurred during this transition, such as hearing, propulsion, shape,
limbs, and several others. They start with Start with Pakicetidae and
end with Mysticeti and Odontoceti lines. For each fossil species, they
describe the fossil, discuss the anatomic modification for living in an
aquatic environment, indicate the environment where the animal lived,
and the give the time range.
Determining whether students have met the goals
The assignment is evaluated based on the number of fossils used to illustrate whale evolution, and the quality of the student's analysis of each fossil whale species.
More information about assessment tools and techniques.Teaching materials and tips
- Activity Description/Assignment (Acrobat (PDF) 39kB Jul8 08)
Other Materials
Supporting references/URLs
Thewissen, G. M., E. M. Williams, E. M., L. J. Roe L. T. and Hussain, S.T. 2001. Skeletons of terrestrial cetaceans and the relationship of whales to artiodactyls. Nature 413: 277-280.
Wong. K. 2002. Mammals That Conquered the Seas. Scientific American 70-80.