Unit 2 Review

An old field guide tells you that green snakes live in your area. You can only find brown ones. What is a possible explanation?

The ecosystem has changed. Animals and plants have adapted since the book was written.

Explain steps that could have made the bushes or snakes change.

Abiotic

Abiotic

Biotic

Biotic

Name as many abiotic things as possible.

List as many biotic factors as you can.

biotic or abiotic?

The eastern cottontails is solitary and very territorial. It is mostly nocturnal, but it sometimes will come out in the early morning and at dusk and sometimes during the day on dark days. The eastern cottontail can leap distances of between 10 and 15 feet. It will sometimes stand on its hind feet to watch for predators like coyotes, foxes, weasels, eagles, and hawks. When a predator is chasing it, the eastern cottontail will often leap from side to side to break its scent trail. It can run at speeds of up to 15 miles an hour.

What types of adaptations are nocturnal and diurnal activity an example of?

behavioral adaptation

List as many structural adaptations as you can think of. 

List things that might limit population growth and prevent overpopulation.

How did you do?

How could we predict if an animal is going to go extinct?

What is bad about overpopulation?

What things might cause overpopulation?

symbiotic relationship

What type of symbiotic relationship is this?

commensal relationship: moss uses trees to get sunlight, moss doesn't affect the tree.

Untitled Slide

Unit 2 Summary

• A species takes a long period of time to develop genetic diversity
• An Adaptation is a change that helps a species survive.
• Peppered moths eventually became black after pollution blackened the trees. This helped the species to blend in.

Unit 2 Summary Pg. 2

• Behavioral adaptations are things like hunting in packs and being nocturnal. They are things than an animal DOES.
• Plants also have adaptations. They taste bad, secret toxins, and have thorns. This prevents things from eating them.

Summary Part 3

• If an environment changes quickly, a species won't be able to overcome the challenges of the environment quickly enough and the species will go extinct.

Summary Part 4

• Our polar ecosystems are suffering because the temperature is rising. This is melting water and making the sea levels rise.
• If prey disappears, the predators also decrease.
• Rapid environmental changes happen in less than a year.

Summary Part 5

• If food increases, the animal that eats it increases in numbers. Population increases.
• Farming can cause habitat loss, soil erosion, and can poison wildlife with pesticides.
• Destroying a wetland causes loss of habitats, flooding, and water pollution due to the water not being filtered.

Summary Part 6

• Constructing roads is detrimental to ecosystems because roads decrease the numbers of producers and destroy animal habitats.