What would be something that would cause a population to be adaptive?

a change in the climate/ weather

Why did the newts become poisonous?

snakes were introduced to their environment

they needed to protect themselves from predators

they were attacked by another poisonous animal

What is an adaptive trait?

a trait that makes it more likely to survive in an environment

a trait that will help a population reproduce

a trait that makes it less likely to survive in an environment

a trait that will lead to extinction

Hummingbirds can have different beak lengths. They use their beaks to reach to the nectar (their food) at the bottom of flowers. Hummingbirds with longer beaks can get food from long flowers. Hummingbirds with shorter beaks cannot reach the nectar in long flowers. If a hummingbird can’t easily reach its food, it will die. The diagrams below show three possible hummingbird populations. If their environment changes to have only long flowers, which of the following hummingbird populations will most likely survive?

Populations 2 and 3 will survive.

Only population 2 will survive because it is the only population with variation.

All the populations will survive because the hummingbirds will change the length of their beaks if they need to.

Populations 1 and 2 will survive.

Eider ducks live in the ocean and have a layer of warm feathers underneath their regular feathers. They can have feathers of different thicknesses. These feathers help the ducks stay warm in cold water. Ducks with thicker feathers are more likely to stay warm and survive in cold water. But, in warm water, thicker feathers can make the ducks overheat and die. The diagram below shows a population of ducks that live in an area of an ocean. At time 1, the population had the same number of ducks with thin and thick feather layers. At time 2, after many generations, there were many more ducks with a thin feather layer and fewer ducks in the population with a thick feather layer. How did the environment change between time 1 and time 2? How did the population change?

The water became warm. With each generation, more ducks with thin feathers survived long enough to pass on the gene for thin feathers to their offspring.

You cannot tell how the environment changed. With each generation, more ducks passed on the gene for thin feathers to their offspring.

The water became warm. As a result, ducks with thin feathers were more likely to survive, so the ducks with thick feathers changed to have thin feathers.

The water became warm. As a result, ducks with thin feathers were more likely to survive, so both kinds of ducks passed on the gene for thin feathers to their offspring.

There is a kind of snake that can be born with red, yellow, or green skin. Eagles hunt these snakes, but snakes that are the same color as their environment are harder for the eagles to see and catch. A population of snakes once lived in an environment where there was sand and dirt, but no grass. The image above shows what the population looked like then. The environment changed so that green grasses and plants now grow there. The diagrams below show two predictions for what the population could look like after many generations. Which prediction best shows what the population could look like after many generations? What caused it to change?

Prediction 1 is best. Two yellow or red snakes had a baby with a mutation in its genes for the green-skin trait. Because green snakes are more likely to survive, that baby survived long enough to pass on its mutation, so the green trait became more common over generations.

Prediction 1 is best. Green snakes are more likely to survive, so yellow and red snakes began to have offspring with mutations in their genes for the green-skin trait so that their offspring would have a better chance of surviving.

Prediction 2 is best. A snake could have been born with a mutation in its genes for the green-skin trait and lived for a little while. Because green snakes are more likely to die, it would have been more likely to die before it had offspring, so the final population will only have yellow and red snakes.

Prediction 2 is best. A snake could have been born with a mutation in its genes for the green-skin trait, but having a mutation in its genes would have caused it to die when it was born, so the final population will only have yellow and red snakes.

Which of the following best describes natural selection?

A process where organisms better adapted to their environment tend to survive and produce more offspring

A random change in the DNA sequence of an organism

The movement of individuals from one population to another

The intentional breeding of organisms by humans

Natural Selection Amplify Exam Quiz

Natural Selection Amplify Exam

Authored by Lisa Thompson

Science

8th Grade

NGSS covered

AI Actions

Add similar questions

Adjust reading levels

Convert to real-world scenario

Translate activity

More...

Content View

Student View

15 questions

Show all answers

OPEN ENDED QUESTION

1 min • 1 pt

The diagram above shows a population of guppies that lived in a river. Scientists had previously only seen guppies with medium or large spots in this river; they had never seen any guppies with any other spot sizes.

-Karina says the change in the guppy population was caused by a mutation.
-Miles says the change was caused by a change in the environment.
-Zora thinks both Karina and Miles are correct.

Who do you think is right? Explain what happened to the guppies over many generations.

Evaluate responses using AI:

OFF

Tags

NGSS.MS-LS4-4

NGSS.MS-LS3-1

MULTIPLE CHOICE QUESTION

1 min • 1 pt

Scientists measured the spine size of a population of cactuses found in an area in 1970. They measured the spine size of the cactus population again in 2015. Which of the statements below best describes the difference in the cactuses at the two time points?

The cactuses in 1970 had smaller spines than the cactuses in 2015.

The cactuses in 1970 had larger spines than the cactuses in 2015.

There were more cactuses in 1970 than there were in 2015.

There was more variation in spine size in 1970 than there was in 2015.

Tags

NGSS.MS-LS1-5

NGSS.MS-LS2-4

NGSS.MS-LS2-1

MULTIPLE CHOICE QUESTION

1 min • 1 pt

How would you describe the histogram above?

Most of the ostrilopes have no fur

Most of the ostrilopes have medium length fur

There is only one type of fur in this population

Most of the ostrilopes have thick fur

Tags

NGSS.MS-LS4-4

NGSS.MS-LS1-5

MULTIPLE CHOICE QUESTION

1 min • 1 pt

How would you describe the variation in this histogram?

There is high variation

There is no variation

There is low variation

Tags

NGSS.MS-LS4-4

MULTIPLE SELECT QUESTION

1 min • 1 pt

How would you describe the population shown in the histogram?

The ostrilopes have thick fur

The ostrilopes don't have a lot of fur

the population has a lot of variation

the population has no variation

Tags

NGSS.MS-LS4-4

MULTIPLE CHOICE QUESTION

1 min • 1 pt

Which of the following is an adaptive trait?

yellow ostrilopes in a green environment with predators present

yellow ostrilopes in a yellow environment with predators present

multiple colors of ostrilopes in a yellow environment with predators present

all of the ostrilopes dying off

Tags

NGSS.MS-LS4-4

MULTIPLE CHOICE QUESTION

1 min • 1 pt

If this population is adaptive, after 50 years how will this population change if there is a lot of rainfall?

the thornpalms will shift to store more water

the thornpalms will die out

the thornpalms will stay about the same

Tags

NGSS.MS-LS1-5

NGSS.MS-LS2-4

NGSS.MS-LS2-1

Access all questions and much more by creating a free account

Create resources

Host any resource

Get auto-graded reports

Continue with Google

Continue with Email

Continue with Classlink

Continue with Clever

or continue with

Microsoft

Apple

Others

Already have an account?

Similar Resources on Wayground

12 questions

Evolution, Cladograms, Superposition Test Review

Quiz

•

8th Grade

20 questions

Methods of Heat Transfer

Quiz

•

7th - 9th Grade

15 questions

Air, Respiration & Pollution

Quiz

•

8th - 9th Grade

16 questions

Newspaper

Quiz

•

5th Grade - Professio...

18 questions

Inner Solar System

Quiz

•

8th Grade

10 questions

Topic 1 Quiz: Matter on the Move

Quiz

•

8th Grade

11 questions

Engineering Process

Quiz

•

5th - 8th Grade

10 questions

Nutrition in Plants and Animals

Quiz

•

7th - 10th Grade

Popular Resources on Wayground

15 questions

Fractions on a Number Line

Quiz

•

3rd Grade

10 questions

Probability Practice

Quiz

•

4th Grade

15 questions

Probability on Number LIne

Quiz

•

4th Grade

20 questions

Equivalent Fractions

Quiz

•

3rd Grade

25 questions

Multiplication Facts

Quiz

•

5th Grade

$fractions$

22 questions

fractions

Quiz

•

3rd Grade

6 questions

Appropriate Chromebook Usage

Lesson

•

7th Grade

10 questions

Greek Bases tele and phon

Quiz

•

6th - 8th Grade

Discover more resources for Science

10 questions

Exploring the Rock Cycle

Interactive video

•

6th - 8th Grade

8 questions

Newton's Second Law

Lesson

•

6th - 8th Grade

8 questions

Amoeba Sister Asexual vs Sexual Reproduction

Interactive video

•

8th Grade

10 questions

Exploring the Rock Cycle: Types and Formation

Interactive video

•

6th - 8th Grade

20 questions

Plate Tectonics

Quiz

•

8th Grade

25 questions

Evolution and Natural Selection Review

Quiz

•

6th - 8th Grade

10 questions

Exploring Weathering, Erosion, and Deposition Processes

Interactive video

•

6th - 10th Grade

20 questions

Rock Cycle

Quiz

•

8th Grade

Natural Selection Amplify Exam

Scientists measured the spine size of a population of cactuses found in an area in 1970. They measured the spine size of the cactus population again in 2015. Which of the statements below best describes the difference in the cactuses at the two time points?

How would you describe the histogram above?

How would you describe the variation in this histogram?

How would you describe the population shown in the histogram?

Which of the following is an adaptive trait?

If this population is adaptive, after 50 years how will this population change if there is a lot of rainfall?

If this population is adaptive, after 50 years how will this population change if there is little to no rainfall?

What would be something that would cause a population to be adaptive?

Why did the newts become poisonous?

Access all questions and much more by creating a free account

Similar Resources on Wayground

Popular Resources on Wayground

Discover more resources for Science