Ab Organisms and the Environment

Bank swallows are birds that make their nests on the edges of rivers but can’t swim or breathe underwater. They feed on flying insects and in the spring, they lay four or five eggs. What change in these birds will likely be brought about by flooding in their habitat?

• Laying more eggs in the spring.

• Building nests higher up the banks.

• Eating different kinds of insects.

• Learning to breathe underwater

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NGSS.MS-LS2-1

NGSS.MS-LS2-4

Each year, an area of the Gulf of Mexico becomes very low in oxygen due to increased growth of algae caused by excessive runoff from the Mississippi River. Which of the following statements reflects the most likely effects of decreased oxygen on aquatic organisms? Aquatic organisms -

• begin using algae as a food source.

• move to an area with more oxygen.

• start to breathe carbon dioxide gas.

• compete with the algae for space.

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NGSS.MS-LS2-1

NGSS.MS-LS2-4

The peppered moth (Biston betularia) has two forms, a white-bodied and a dark-bodied form. The table provided shows the percentages of each type in a moth population over several yearstime. What environmental change would lead to these changes in the population of peppered moths?

• The primary food sources for the peppered moths disappears.

• The trees where peppered moths rest become lighter in color.

• Predators of peppered moths develop a distaste for dark colored moths.

• The climate in the area where the moths live suddenly becomes much cooler.

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NGSS.MS-LS2-4

Robins migrate south during the winter months to avoid harsh conditions and then return north during the summer. What environmental condition are the robins most likely responding to in order to determine when the seasons are changing?

• The tilt of Earth on its axis.

• Fluctuations in predator populations.

• Changing length of daylight hours.

• Increasing availability of water.

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NGSS.MS-ESS1-1

Some species of frogs live in freshwater ponds, eat bugs, and are prey to heron. These frogs survive loss of water by estivation (an inactive state of deep sleep during the summer). During a period of prolonged drought, which of the following changes to the population of frogs would be expected? The drought would lead to frogs that -

• eat more bugs.

• require less sunlight.

• estivate longer.

• can hide from heron.

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NGSS.MS-LS2-1

NGSS.MS-LS2-4