Introduction to Change Over Time in the Ecosystem

What would be the most likely result if some of the species in the coral reef are destroyed?

• Other organisms would move into the coral reef area.

• The coral reef would be allowed to expand without so many fish and plants living in and around it.

• The waters surrounding the coral reef will become cool with the decreasing number of organisms living there.

• The coral reef would begin to deteriorate and decrease without the variety of fish and plants needed to maintain stability.

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In some Australian estuaries, shellfish-bed populations have declined due to habitat changes and overharvesting. How will this affect the biodiversity of these ecosystems?

• biodiversity will increase along with the number of shellfish people can harvest.

• Biodiversity will increase along with the value of the shellfish when people sell them.

• Biodiversity will decrease as well as the number of available shellfish

• Biodiversity will decrease as well as the competition for harvesting shellfish.

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Charles Darwin studied the finches of the Galapagos Islands and found that their beaks vary in shape and size. Darwin found that the finches that ate mostly insects had long, narrow beaks. Finches that ate mostly seeds had shorter, broad beaks to crush seeds. Which statement below best describes how natural selection resulted in the four types of finches shown above?

• The narrow-beaked finches came first, and evolved into the broad-beaked finches through a series of natural mutations.

• The residents of the Galapagos Islands selectively bred together finches having the traits that they wanted them to have.

• The broad-beaked finches wore down their beaks digging for insects and passed these narrower beaks on to their offspring.

• Over time, the finches that were born with beaks better suited to the available food supply in their habitats survived and reproduced.

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The illustration below shows the changes over time in a population of mice in the wild after a population of hawks has moved into the grassy fields where they live. White and dark mice differ only in color.

Which statement is the most likely explanation for why the mouse population changed over time?

• The white mice are able to reproduce more successfully than the dark mice do.

• The hawks eat more dark mice than white mice because the dark mice taste better.

• The hawks eat more white mice than dark mice because they can see the white mice more easily.

• The hawks eat more dark mice than white mice, because they can see the dark mice more easily.

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Over a long period of time, some flowering plants have become dependent on nectar wasp to fertilize their seeds. In recent years, a form of mite has infected and killed nectar wasps in many areas of the country.

Since this has happened, the plants that are dependent on nectar wasps for pollination will have the best chance of surviving if

• they grow taller so that the few remaining nectar wasps will find them

• they change their flowers so that the wind will fertilize them

• they have always attracted many other insects as well as nectar wasps

• they have seeds that stay alive for a long time in the environment

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What statement best compares the effects of short-term changes and long-term changes to the environment?

• Both short-term changes and long-term changes immediately affect populations.

• Both short-term changes and long-term changes gradually affect individuals.

• Short-term changes immediately affect individuals. Long-term changes gradually affect populations.

• Short-term changes gradually affect populations. Long term immediately affects individuals.

Which of the following is most likely to cause a change in the genetic traits in an isolated population of a ground-dwelling lizard species?

• The exposure of an individual lizard in the population to radiation that causes a mutation that is not passed on to its offspring, but gives it ninja powers and cravings for pizza.

• An unusually dry summer in the lizard population’s ecosystem.

• The introduction of an invasive predator that preys on the brightest colored-individuals in the lizard population.

• A fast-moving wildfire that burns the canopy of the trees in the lizard population’s ecosystem.

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Adaptations passed on during natural selection most likely help organism avoid

• each other

• predators

• food

• sunlight

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A series of progressive changes in the composition of an ecological community over time

• Climax Community

• Primary Succession

• Ecological Succession

• Species Richness

a change or disturbance of the environment most often caused by human influences and natural ecological processes.

• Environmental Change

• Evidence Of Evolution

• Trophic Level

• Natural Selection

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