The Great Barrier Reef

What is the Great Barrier Reef?

• a mammal that comes to the ocean's surface to breathe every seven to 15 minutes

• something that is made out of the same material as human fingernails and enables whales to strain small fish from seawater

• the world's largest coral reef, located off the northeastern coast of Australia

• a large part of the Amazon rainforest located in the country of Brazil

Tags

NGSS.MS-ESS3-4

NGSS.MS-LS2-3

NGSS.MS-LS2-4

The danger that the Great Barrier Reef now faces is an effect.

What is one cause of the danger it faces?

• the humpback whale

• a symbiotic relationship

• pollution

• clownfish

Tags

NGSS.MS-ESS3-4

Many animals live in and around the Great Barrier Reef.

What evidence from the passage supports this statement?

• "Rivers coming from northern Australia can bring pollution from farm run-off when there are floods. Farm runoff pollution includes animal waste, fertilizer, and pesticides. In recent years, pollution from these rivers has become worse because there are fewer coastal wetlands."

• "The Great Barrier Reef is home to over 1,500 species of fish. But it's not just fish that live in the reef. The reef also provides food and shelter to sponges, whales, dolphins, marine turtles and mollusks."

• "Many ships pass through the Great Barrier Reef when they are bringing cargo to and from Australia. It can be tricky for captains to navigate through these waters, and, as of 2013, there were over 1,600 known shipwrecks in the Great Barrier Reef."

• "Where are the most biologically diverse places on the planet? If I asked you this question, you might guess the Amazon rainforest in Brazil or the jungles of India."

Based on information in the passage, what is a symbiotic and mutualistic relationship?

• a biologically diverse place, such as a jungle in India

• an underwater structure that secretes a hard substance called calcium carbonate

• an animal that visits an area seasonally to breed and give birth

• a relationship between two animals in which each animal helps the other

What is this passage mainly about?

• sea anemones and clownfish

• humpback whales and their young

• the Great Barrier Reef

• rising ocean temperatures

Read the following sentence:

"Around a quarter of all marine species live in coral reefs, and they play an important role in supporting diversity in the ocean."

What does the word diversity mean?

• many different kinds of things

• a serious threat to ocean life

• a hard outer layer than protects coral

• something that can be seen from outer space

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NGSS.MS-LS2-5

Choose the answer that best completes the sentence below.

The Great Barrier Reef is the largest coral reef on Earth; ______, it may disappear within your lifetime.

• consequently

• before

• as an illustration

• however

Tags

NGSS.MS-LS2-5