Desert Characteristics and Animal Adaptation

Some of the characteristics of the desert are described below. • Very dry and often hot • Less than 25 centimeters of rainfall a year • The soil is sandy or rocky and unable to hold much water • Some plants called succulents are found there that have spines and flowers that open at night to lure pollinators Based on the descriptions above, which animals are LEAST likely to live in the desert?

• Burrowing Owl

• Jackrabbit

• Polar Bear

• Rattlesnake

• Blue Heron

A pillbug is a small animal with an outside skeleton, 3 body parts, and several pairs of legs. Roger put 20 pillbugs at one end of a box. What was he trying to prove?

• Pillbugs sense a change in their environment.

• Pillbugs move in groups.

• Pillbugs move very slowly from one side of the shoebox to another.

• Pillbugs prefer a wet environment rather than a dry environment.

Many types of water birds like ducks and geese migrate south in winter. What is the MOST LIKELY reason they do this?

• the ponds and lakes dry up

• the ponds and lakes ice over

• they need new ponds and lakes

• they like to travel

Which organism in the food chain is the decomposer?

• grass

• rabbit

• bobcat

• mushroom

Which answer best describes the role of the decomposer in the food chain?

• eats only plants

• hunts other animals

• makes their own food

• breaks down waste

In the food chain below, from where does the energy originate?

• The energy originates from the sun.

• The energy originates from the soil.

• The energy originates from the air.

• The energy originates from water.

Parts of a forest are cut down to build fields for playing sports. Some of the forest is left standing at the edges of the field. What changes will occur for the organisms living in the area? Select two correct answers.

• There will be more space for the organisms on the fields.

• There will be less shelter for the organisms in the fields.

• There will be less water for plants in the fields.

• There will be less sunlight for the plants in the fields.

• There will be less plants in the forest because of the fields.

Coyotes roam over large areas of land in Texas. What effect would building a mall in the coyotes' territory have on these animals?

• The coyote population would increase.

• The size of the coyote population would remain unchanged.

• The size of the coyotes' habitat would decrease.

• The coyotes would leave the entire area.

The drawing below shows the fossils found in four rock layers. Which of these lists the fossils from oldest to youngest?

• [Image of crinoid, ammonite, brachiopod, trilobite]

• [Image of ammonite, crinoid, trilobite, brachiopod]

• [Image of trilobite, brachiopod, ammonite, crinoid]

• [Image of brachiopod, crinoid, trilobite, ammonite]

Archeologists were digging for fossils in the deserts of West Texas. Fern fossils were found during the dig. One of the fern fossils is pictured below. The finding of the fern fossils suggests the desert of West Texas was once ______.

• covered by ocean

• a forest

• covered with ice and snow

• part of a volcanic eruption