wayground logo

Free Printable Worksheets

NEW

Font size

S
M
L
XL
Worksheets

Peppered moth Mystery

Total questions: 16

Worksheet time: 11mins

Name
Class
Date
1.

What caused the soot to cover the trees in Great Britain from 1780 to 1830?

a)

burning coal

b)

setting fires

c)

black wind

d)

dead moths

2.
Why did the population of moths change
a)
Predators were able to easily see their prey.
b)
People hunted lighter colored moths
c)
White moths were killed by the smoke from the factories
d)
Moths mood changed to sad, causing them to become dark
3.
The term that best describes why the moth population changed color over time
a)
adaptation
b)
natural selection
c)
mutation
d)
predator-prey
4.
When every organism of a species has died.
a)
Evolution
b)
Natural Selection
c)
Extinction
d)
Artificial Selection
5.

What word describes a trait that helps an organism survive in its environment?

a)

natural selection

b)

mutation

c)

camouflage

d)

adaptation

6.

Why do moths and other organism reproduce so many eggs or offspring?

a)

so that their babies can have friends to play with

b)

the more offspring the more likely the offspring will survive

c)

the more offspring the less likely offspring will survive

d)

the more offspring the less competition

7.

Do organisms "decide" to evolve and change?

a)

Yes, they know they need to change to survive

b)

No, they change because of natural selection

8.
Natural selection is the process by which
a)
change occurs in the genetic characteristics of individuals that live together in an environment from one generation to another
b)
organisms with traits well-suited to their environment reproduce at a greater rate than less well-adapted organisms in the same environment
c)
use and disuse of a characteristic leads to evolutionary change
d)
baseball players pass on the trait for strong arm muscles to children
9.
In natural selection, the selective agent is the
a)
humans
b)
mutations
c)
breeders
d)
environment
10.
Why are advantageous traits more likely to be passed onto offspring?
a)
Because they are more likely to survive and reproduce.
b)
Because they come from dominant alleles.
c)
Because they come from recessive alleles.
d)
Because the trait is an acquired phenotype.
11.

What was being built during the Industrial Revolution, and what happened to the surrounding trees?

a)

Factories and turned them black

b)

Factories and cut them down

c)

Factories and mined underneath the trees and the forest collapsed

d)

Factories saw how they were polluting the environment and planted more trees

12.

Why did dark moths have a survival advantage when they were near factories?

a)

They could hide in the birds shadow.

b)

They could push the white moths into the flames.

c)

They did not have a survival advantage.

d)

They blended in with the dark tree trunks.

13.

When in the light forest the ____________ moths are MORE LIKELY to survive.

a)

Light

b)

Dark

c)

Neither

d)

Both

14.

When in the dark forest the ____________ moths are MORE LIKELY to survive.

a)

Light

b)

Dark

c)

Neither

d)

Both

15.

Why did the number of white peppered moths decrease so much by 1895?

a)

they did not blend in with the trees and birds ate them

b)

they tasted better to the birds than the black moths

c)

they were easier to reach on the trees

d)

white moths flew away to find better trees to blend in with

16.
Why did the population of moths change
a)
Predators were able to easily see their prey.
b)
People hunted lighter colored moths
c)
White moths were killed by the smoke from the factories
d)
Moths mood changed to sad, causing them to become dark