9
lesson pretestMultiple Choice

Pretest

Question 9 • CMS 2026-2027 Biology CREDIT RECOVERY

A scientist discovers a new organism that is related to clownfish. What can the scientist discover by using molecular clocks?

Answer
A
the number of years that fish have existed
B
the amount of time that the two species have been evolving apart
C
the age of the organism
D
the date that the organism first appeared in the fossil record

Explanation

Molecular clocks use the number of genetic differences between related species to estimate how long ago their lineages split. So the scientist can estimate the amount of time the new organism and clownfish have been evolving apart. They do not directly reveal the organism’s age or when it first appeared in the fossil record.

AI-written and checked against the verified answer.

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