VOCABULARY
Biodiversity
The sum of the different forms of living things in a given area or population
describe Ocean acidification
The process that decreases the pH of the ocean due to an increase in the absorption of carbon dioxide
Natural Selection
Differential survival and reproductive success among a group of organisms due to differences in the inherited traits or characteristics of the organisms
True Or False. A population is All of the organisms of one species within a particular ecosystem
TRUE
What is the vocabulary term for a non native organism that is introduced to a new environment, spreads rapidly because it has no natural predators, and harms the local ecosystem?
INVASIVE SPECIES
climate change
A long-term change in the temperature range and related environmental variables for regions of Earth
what are Invasive species
An alien (non-native to the ecosystem) species, usually brought to an area by humans, that competes for resources and causes problems for the native species within an ecosystem
adaptation
Adaptation
A process by which the heritable characteristics of a population change such that the organisms in the population become better able to survive and reproduce in their environment
The continued existence of organisms that are better adapted to their environment, with the extinction of others that are not is also known as ____________
survival of the fittest
How does having a high variety of plant species in a meadow help protect the herbivores that live there if a severe drought occurs?
If a drought kills off a few types of plants, a highly biodiverse meadow will likely have other, drought-resistant plant species that survive. This ensures the herbivores still have a food source and don't starve.
An increase in the average temperature of Earth's atmosphere, especially a sustained increase great enough to cause changes in the global climate
what is an example of Human activity
Transportation
Waste production
Urban development
mutation
A change in the DNA sequence of a chromosome
A phenotype is The _________ of a gene or set of genes; the appearance of an organism
physical expression
A farmer sprays a chemical pesticide on his crops and kills 99% of the insects. The next year, he uses the exact same pesticide, but it only kills 50% of the insects. Using the principles of natural selection, explain why the pesticide stopped working as well.
The 1% of insects that survived the first year had a natural genetic resistance to the chemical. They survived, reproduced, and passed this resistant trait to their offspring, creating a new population that is mostly immune to the pesticide.
Natural disaster
A force of nature that results in catastrophic consequences
Imagine two forests: Forest A has 50 different species of plants and animals, while Forest B has only 3 species. If a new plant disease spreads through both forests, which ecosystem is more likely to survive, and why?
Forest A is more likely to survive. High biodiversity means there are many different food sources and roles. If one species dies, others can take its place, keeping the food web stable. Forest B's ecosystem would likely collapse.
genes
Segments of DNA that code for protein or functional RNA
Why is genetic variation necessary for natural selection? What could happen to a species if every individual was exactly the same and their environment suddenly changed?
Variation ensures that at least some individuals might have the traits needed to survive new challenges. If all individuals were identical, a single environmental change could cause the entire species to go extinct.
Most bananas sold in grocery stores around the world are grown from cuttings, meaning every single banana plant is a genetically identical clone. Explain how this extreme lack of genetic biodiversity makes the global banana crop highly vulnerable.
Because all the banana plants are genetically identical, they share the exact same weaknesses. If a single disease or fungus evolves that can kill one banana plant, it can quickly wipe out the entire global crop because no individual plants possess a variation that gives them natural resistance.
Deforestation
Removal of a forest or stand of trees, which are then used for nonforest purposes
When humans cut down large sections of a rainforest to build roads or farms, what happens to the biodiversity of that area?
This harms the ecosystem because it breaks food chains, pushes species toward extinction, and makes the area less able to recover from disasters.
Trait
A distinct characteristic of an organism, which may or may not be inheritable
A forest has both light green and dark brown beetles. If a drought causes all the green plants to die, leaving only brown dirt and dead wood, which color beetle will become more common over time, and why?
Dark brown beetles will become more common. They are better camouflaged against the brown background, allowing them to hide from predators, survive, and pass their brown trait to their offspring.
Male guppies often have bright, flashy colors to attract females, but these colors also make them easily visible to predators. Explain how natural selection balances these two opposing pressures depending on whether the guppies live in a pond with many predators or a pond with zero predators.
In a pond with many predators, natural selection favors dull-colored guppies because hiding is necessary to survive long enough to reproduce. In a pond with zero predators, survival is easy, so natural selection favors the brightly colored guppies because they are the most successful at attracting mates and passing on their genes.