Organisms and Their Environment

Which of the following situations contributes to the sustainability of an ecosystem?

• Increase in biodiversity

• Decrease in biodiversity

• Extinction of a population from the ecosystem

• Removal of many populations of organisms

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NGSS.MS-LS2-4

NGSS.MS-LS2-5

The food webs below model relationships among organisms in two ecosystems. Students were asked to make a claim supported with evidence to answer the question, “Which ecosystem would be most sustainable if all the grasses died from severe drought?” What claim is valid and supported by the evidence?

• The forest ecosystem is most sustainable because there are more top predators.

• The grassland ecosystem is most sustainable because there are fewer organisms that eat grass.

• The forest ecosystem is most sustainable because most of the animals can eat other organisms.

• The grassland ecosystem is most sustainable because there is less competition for food.

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NGSS.MS-LS2-1

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NGSS.MS-LS2-4

Which event would most likely cause an ecosystem to have the lowest biodiversity and population sizes 3 years later?

• Clearing land for a highway

• A river floods a cornfield

• A forest fire destroys the plant growth

• A lava flow creates a new section of land

Tags

NGSS.MS-LS2-1

NGSS.MS-LS2-4

The role of a pioneer species in primary succession is to change a bare habitat into one that is suitable for other organisms. A species that is responsible for primary succession in an ecosystem is most likely able to —

• survive any predator

• migrate during the winter

• live at high altitudes

• carry out photosynthesis

Tags

NGSS.MS-LS1-6

Which of the following sequences most likely represents ecological succession on a recently abandoned wheat field?

• grasses → flowering plants → shrubs → native trees

• native trees → shrubs → flowering plants → grasses

• shrubs → grasses → native trees → flowering plants

• flowering plants → native trees → shrubs → grasses

Tags

NGSS.MS-LS2-1

What is the relationship between ecological succession and equilibrium in an ecosystem?

• Ecological succession leads to equilibrium in an ecosystem.

• Ecological succession prevents ecosystems from ever reachingequilibrium.

• There is no relationship between ecological succession and equilibrium.

• Ecological succession and equilibrium are the same thing.

Tags

NGSS.MS-LS2-4

A hurricane hits a coastal prairie and destroys the habitat. Years later, there is an appearance of small plants with rapidly spreading roots.

This vegetation describes —

• a microhabitat

• primary succession

• secondary succession

• biodiversity

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NGSS.MS-LS2-4

When forest fires destroyed many of the pine trees in Bastrop State Park, the burned areas began secondary succession. What is the role of succession in this example?

• Creating new soil by chemical and physical weathering of rocks

• Restoring the ecosystem through grass, shrub, and tree stages

• Changing the landscape to be more fire resistant in the future

• Opening the land for new uses like farming and raising livestock

Tags

NGSS.MS-LS2-4

Students observe ecological succession of a field that has been left bare. Which of the following are the students likely to observe first?

• Growth of shrubs and trees

• Formation of topsoil

• A mature grassland community

• Growth of grasses and weeds

What is an adaptation?

• None of these answer choices.

• A behavior that develops from instruction or observation

• A characteristic that is passed from parent to offspring

• A change that helps an organism survive in it's environment.

Tags

NGSS.MS-LS1-4

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NGSS.MS-LS4-4