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The Great Lakes: The U.S. and Canada's Freshwater Treasure

Total questions: 13

Worksheet time: 7mins

Name
Class
Date
1.

How were the Great Lakes created?

a)

by the clearing of forests

b)

by the damming of rivers

c)

by the melting of glaciers

2.

Which of these terms is best defined as a geographic area that includes all of the rivers and streams that flow into a lake or sea?

a)

landmass

b)

plateau

c)

watershed

3.

Read the description below. Then decide which of the terms that follows best fits what is being described:


Insects feed on the algae and plants that grow in the Great Lakes. Tiny fish eat the insects. Larger fish feed on the small fish. Eagles and otters eat the larger fish.

a)

Great Lakes watershed

b)

Great Lakes food chain

c)

Great Lakes freshwater ecosystem

4.

Which of the following suffered most from DDT poisoning in the Great Lakes region?

a)

fish-eating birds

b)

large fish

c)

small fish

5.

The sea lamprey and zebra mussel are part of which of these Great Lakes ecosystem problems?

a)

invasive species

b)

algae explosions

c)

point-source pollution

6.

Which of the following conclusions about Michigan is best supported by the graph?

a)

Housing areas are expanding

b)

Dairy farms are a leading industry

c)

The lumber industry is shrinking

7.

What is the main difference between point-source and non-point-source pollution?

a)

how toxic the pollution is

b)

where the pollution comes from

c)

what time of year the pollution occurs

8.

Which of these is a major reason for a growing water shortage in many countries?

a)

invasive species

b)

shrinking glaciers

c)

population growth

9.

Why are the Great Lakes often called "the fourth seacoast"?

a)

Because the Great Lakes are filled with salt water, like the ocean

b)

Because the Great Lakes are the world's largest freshwater ecosystem

c)

Because the Great Lakes are so large that they look and act like the oceans

10.

Which of the following is a cause of habitat loss in the Great Lakes?

a)

Loss of forests and wetlands to industrial activity

b)

Introduction of invasive species

c)

The harm DDT inflicts on birds

11.

Which of the following is the best definition of "food chain"?

a)

All of the feeding relationships within an ecosystem

b)

A geographic area that includes all of the land and waterways that drain into a body of water

c)

A series of plants and animals, each of which depends on the one below it for food

12.

Which species in this food chain depends on smelt to survive?

a)

Phytoplankton and lake trout

b)

Lake trout and herring gulls

c)

Only lake trout

13.

Suppose the water is polluted in such a way that all of the phytoplankton die. How might this affect this food chain?

a)

The smelt would lose their food source and die.

b)

The smelt and lake trout would both lose their food sources and die.

c)

The smelt, lake trout, and herring gulls would all lose their food sources.