Compare ways to protect biodiversity and choose the best

Grade 9 Science Worksheet - Building Confidence

Circle the best answer.

1. Read this first

   Use this

   Decision matrix (model data), scores 1 to 3, a higher score is better in every column. Every column counts the same. Protected area, protects living habitat 3, low cost 1, few side effects 2; Wildlife corridor, protects living habitat 2, low cost 2, few side effects 3; Seed bank, protects living habitat 1, low cost 3, few side effects 2.

2. 1.

   Pia scores three plans for a model valley. Every column counts the same. Which plan has the highest total?

   • Wildlife corridor: 2 + 2 + 3 = 7 points, the highest total of the three
   • Protected area and seed bank tie, each with 6 points, so they beat the corridor
   • Protected area: it has the top score for protecting living habitat, 3
   • Seed bank: it has the top score for low cost, 3, so it is good value

3. Use this

   Decision matrix (model data), scores 1 to 3, a higher score is better in every column. Every column counts the same. Invasive-species control, protects living habitat 2, low cost 3, few side effects 3; Reducing runoff, protects living habitat 3, low cost 2, few side effects 2; Protected area, protects living habitat 3, low cost 1, few side effects 2.

4. 2.

   Ren adds the scores in a row, counting every column the same. What is the total for reducing runoff?

   • 3 points
   • 8 points
   • 7 points: 3 + 2 + 2
   • 2 points

5. A planning card for a model valley (model data)

   line	what it says
   budget	at most 6 million dollars
   land	at most 40 hectares
   time	ready within 5 years
   benefit to species	the higher the better

6. 3.

   Jun reads a planning card. Which line is a criterion, a goal to score as high as possible?

   • Land: a plan may use at most 40 hectares of land
   • Time: a plan must be ready within 5 years of the start
   • Budget: a plan may cost at most 6 million dollars
   • Benefit to species: the higher the better for the valley

7. Three plans and a budget limit of 5 million dollars (model data)

   plan	benefit score	cost (million dollars)
   Protected area	5	8
   Wildlife corridor	4	6
   Invasive-species control	3	3

8. 4.

   Milo must stay within the budget limit. Which plan stays within the budget?

   • Wildlife corridor: its cost of 6 million is closest to the limit
   • Invasive-species control, which costs 3 million dollars
   • Protected area: it has the highest benefit score, 5
   • No plan stays within the budget, because plans cost something
9. 5.

   Scientists list five main drivers: habitat loss, invasive species, overharvesting, pollution and climate change. Tala reads that a town cuts the greenhouse gases it adds to the air. Which driver does this address?

   • Pollution: rain carries fertilizer into a nearby stream
   • The five drivers at once: cutting greenhouse gases answers the whole list
   • Invasive species: a plant spreads far from where it began
   • Climate change: greenhouse gases trap more heat in the air

10. Four solutions (model data)

    solution	what it does
    protected area	sets land aside with protection for the living things inside
    seed bank	stores copies of seed samples in a cold vault
    invasive-species control	removes a species that people brought to a new place
    reducing runoff	slows rain water so it carries less soil and fertilizer

11. 6.

    Bo wants to keep a wild forest, the living home of its plants, where it grows. Which solution does that job?

    • Protected area: it sets land aside for the living things inside
    • Seed bank: it stores seed copies in a cold vault, so the forest is not needed
    • Invasive-species control: it removes a species brought to a new place
    • Reducing runoff: it slows rain water so it carries less soil

12. A seed bank card (sourced facts)

    fact	value
    seed samples stored	more than 1.4 million
    institutions that deposited	134
    storage temperature (degrees Celsius)	-18

13. 7.

    Zee reads the seed bank card. Which statement about this seed bank is correct?

    • It protects the wild habitat where those plants grow, so the plants stay in their homes
    • It stores backup copies of seed samples
    • It answers the five drivers at once, because stored seeds cannot be reached by them
    • It keeps living plants growing inside the vault, so they can be seen year round

14. Climate facts (sourced facts)

    fact	value
    global surface temperature, 2011-2020 above 1850-1900 (degrees Celsius)	1.1
    carbon dioxide in the air, now above 1750 (percent)	nearly 50
    species assessed that have shifted polewards or to higher elevations	about half

15. 8.

    Noah reads the climate card. By about how many degrees Celsius was 2011-2020 warmer than 1850-1900?

    • 0.5 degrees Celsius
    • 11 degrees Celsius
    • 1.1 degrees Celsius
    • 50 degrees Celsius

16. Extra movement with a corridor, by group (model data)

    group	extra movement (percent)
    ground beetles	60
    small mammals	55
    flowering plants	50
    songbirds	15

17. 9.

    Luz reads model data on how much extra movement a corridor gave four groups. Which group gained the least?

    • Flowering plants, with 50%, the value close to the middle
    • Ground beetles, with 60%, the value at the top of the table
    • Songbirds, with 15%
    • The groups tie, since a corridor helps the groups equally

18. Extra movement with a corridor, three groups (model data)

    group	extra movement (percent)
    ground beetles	62
    flowering plants	48
    songbirds	12

19. 10.

    Ari says a corridor helps songbirds as much as plants. Which reply uses the table correctly?

    • Ground beetles gained the least, because they are the smallest group
    • Songbirds gained more, because birds fly and use a corridor the most
    • Plants gained 48% and songbirds 12%, so the corridor helped plants more
    • Both gained the same, since one corridor joins the same two patches for both