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Science
Quarter 1- Module 5
(Week 5)
Biodiversity and Species Extinction
INTRODUCTORY MESSAGE
When you were in Grade 8, you learned about how organisms are classified
accordingly using the hierarchical taxonomy and the importance of biodiversity in
maintaining a stable ecosystem. In this year, you will understand the significance of
biodiversity, the causes of species extinction including the changes in the
environment and how it affects the survival of organisms. Furthermore, you will find
out how species extinction relate to the failure of populations of organisms to adapt
to abrupt changes in the environment.
In any biological system, living things require a balanced environment. A
balanced environment is one in which all living and nonliving things are interacting
effectively. On the off chance that any portion of the environment is irritated, other
parts will too be aggravated. What happens to a community when its species' differing
qualities is diminished? Does loss of biodiversity influence an ecosystem’s capacity
to maintain the species that stay or to perform certain capacities that will contribute
to wants of that biological system?
Biodiversity is a measure of variation and richness of living organisms at a
particular scale. In this module, we are going to learn some of the important roles
that biodiversity plays in biological systems.
This module is divided into two lessons namely:
Lesson 1 – Biodiversity and Population
Lesson 2 – Causes of Species Extinction

At the end of this module, you should be able to:

Relate species extinction to the failure of populations of organisms to adapt to

abrupt changes in the environment

Specifically, the activities in this module will enable you to:

• define terms related to biodiversity
• explain the importance of high diversity of organisms for survival
• analyze the effects of having low index of diversity and high index of
diversity to a certain population
• identify different causes of species extinction
• name some ways of how to help slow down the rate of extinction of
species
To help you understand the lessons you will be doing the following activities:

I. Biodiversity and Population

• Check your understanding
• Unscramble the biodiversity in me!
• My backyard biodiversity

II. Causes of Species Extinction

• Picture Me!
• Cause-> Effect
• Reflect and Deflect
• Environmental Stewardship

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 What I Know (Pretest)
MULTIPLE CHOICE. Read and answer the questions in the best
way you can. Write the letter of your answer on the space provided before
each number.

1. Which of the following best describes biodiversity?

a. Biodiversity refers to the variety of life in an area.
b. Biodiversity refers to the variety of non-living things in an
ecosystem
c. Biodiversity refers to the interaction of livings in different
ecosystems
d. Biodiversity refers to the similarities of organisms living in an
ecosystem

2. Biodiversity is a short term for ____________.

a. biological diversity c. biological diverse
b. biological diversified d. bio diversified

3. What do you call a group of living things within a certain area that are all
of the same species?
a. Ecosystem B. Population C. Community D. Diversity

4. The following are types of biodiversity except one.

a. Genetic diversity c. Ecological diversity
b. Species diversity d. Community diversity

5. It refers to total genetic information contained in the genes of individuals of

plants, animals and microorganisms.
a. Genetic diversity c. Ecological diversity
b. Species diversity d. Community diversity

6. It is the most common level of diversity, and comprises the number of

different species at a place.
a. Genetic diversity c. Ecological diversity
b. Species diversity d. Community diversity

7. It relates to variety of habitats, biotic communities and ecological processes

in the biosphere, and is considered as complex level of diversity.
a. Genetic diversity c. Ecological diversity
b. Species diversity d. Community diversity

8. Scientists use a formula to describe the amount of species diversity in a

given area. How do you call this formula?
a. Population density c. index of diversity
b. Percentage diversity d. index of density
9. The average temperature of the earth’s atmosphere may rise as a result of
a. Greenhouse effect c. water pollution
b. garbage dumping d. air pollution
10. Biodiversity can affect the ________ of ecosystems and the _________ of
populations.
a. sustainability and stability
b. stability and sustainability
c. life and existence
d. existence and life

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 Lesson

11 Biodiversity and Adaptation

What I Need to Know

At the end of the lesson, you should be able to:

• define terms related to biodiversity

• explain the importance of high diversity of organisms for survival
• analyze the effects of having low index of diversity and high index of
diversity to a certain population

What’s In

The Philippines is identified as one of the world’s biologically richest countries. With
more than 7,000 islands that fall within its borders, the country’s terrestrial and marine
habitats contain some of the richest biodiversity of flora (plants) and fauna (animals) . The
Philippines is also situated at the apex of the Coral Triangle, which is the global center
for marine biodiversity. Despite being ecologically rich, the Philippines still ranks among
the top ten countries with the largest number of species threatened with extinction. How
could this be possible? What might be the reason while despite having the fact that our
country possesses high biodiversity many species are still becoming extinct? Let us find
out the answers to these questions as we go through
this module.

Look at the picture. This is the very famous

Bolinao Coral System located in Pangasinan. What
can you say about it? How many species do you see?
Can you count them?
Figure 1: Bolinao Coral System
SOURCE: https://coraldestructionphilippines.weebly.com/sustaining-the-environment.html

How about this very famous

instagrammable Sunflower Maze in Tayug,
Pangasinan? Have you been here? What can you
say about it? Which species do you think
dominates this area?

Figure 2: Sunflower Maze in Tayug

Source: https://www.our7107islands.com/sunflower-maze-in-tayug pangasinan/

You can see hundreds of different species of organisms in the Bolinao Coral
System, whereas in a sunflower plantation, only one species dominates. A population is
a group of living things within a certain area that are all of the same species.

What’s New
Several different populations may be found in a community. A population of one
kind may affect a population of another kind within the community. A jungle has a greater

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amount of biological diversity, or biodiversity, than a cornfield. Biodiversity refers to the
variety of life in the area. In a jungle community, some populations, such as ants, fungi,
and ferns, can be very large in number. Other populations such as tigers and snakes have
fewer members. Why do you think population sizes vary among organisms?
Biodiversity is a compound word derived from ‘biological diversity’. It is a term used
to describe the variety of living things on earth. It consists of microorganisms, plants,
animals and ecosystems and refers to the richness of nature and resources available to
us.
Let’s look at the pictures shown above (figure 1 and 2). Which of the figures
represent an ecosystem with high biodiversity? What made you say that it has high
biodiversity? What are the different species of organism present? How does an abiotic
factor like water help the organism in that ecosystem? Which figure represents low
biodiversity? How can you say that it has low biodiversity? What species dominates in the
area? What will happen to the population of organisms if a certain plant disease will
strike? We will answer these questions as we go on to this module.
Biodiversity has three elements namely species diversity, genetic diversity and
ecosystem diversity.
Genetic Diversity refers to total genetic information contained in the genes of individuals
of plants, animals and microorganisms.
Species Diversity is the most common level of diversity, and comprises the number of
different species at a place.
Ecosystem Diversity relates to variety of habitats, biotic communities and ecological
processes in the biosphere, and is considered as complex level of diversity.
These diversities vary globally and within the region due to many factors such as
temperature, altitude, soils and relations of species.

Activity: Check your understanding!

1. What term is used to describe the variety of life? _____________________
2. Which of the following is NOT an element of biodiversity?
a. Genetic diversity c. species diversity
b. c. ecosystem diversity d. index of diversity
3. Diversities vary globally and within the region due to many factors. Which of the
following are these factors?
a. Latitude, altitude, water, environment
b. Temperature, altitude, soils and relations of species
c. Climate change, population, ecosystem
d. Habitats, ecosystem, area, population density
4. Name the type of diversity each picture below shows.

A B C

What is it?
Scientists use a formula called the biodiversity index to describe the
amount of species diversity in a given area. A simple biodiversity index is calculated as
follows:
Index of biodiversity= number of species in the area
total number of individuals in the area
For example, a 4 X 4-meter square area in a carrot patch has 300 carrot plants, all the same
species.

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 Index of biodiversity= 1 = 0.003 (very low index of diversity)
300
A community with very low index of diversity is more at risk of extinction if
environmental changes occur.
A 4 X 4-meter square area in the forest has 1 pine tree, 1 fern, 1 conifer tree, 1 moss, and
1 lichen, for a total of 5 different species and 5 individuals.
Index of biodiversity= 5 = 1 (very high index of diversity)
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A community with very high index of diversity consisting of many species has a
better chance of including individuals that might be able to adapt to changes in
the environment.
For 3.5 billion years the earth is continuously evolving resulting to richness of
variety of life. But as human population grows and activities become immense, many
organisms are subjected to extinction. We have heard many geological studies that
confirmed the presence of dinosaurs, but where are they now? These dinosaurs are
actually one of the many organisms that are being extinct due to impacts human activities
have occurred in the environment. Perform the activity below to check your
understanding.

Activity: Solve the index of diversity for the following community of trees.

Community A Community

What’s More
An ecosystem is a community of organisms interacting with the physical
environment. It has two components which include biotic (living) and abiotic (non-living)
components. To continuously survive, organisms depend on their ecosystem that needs a
balanced environment. In a balanced ecosystem, all organisms interact successfully in a
place where there is enough supply of non-living components to sustain life.
What will happen to the organisms in an ecosystem, if there are not enough non-
living components like water, soil, sunlight, and air present? What will happen to the
ecosystem if the organisms are not in their state of balance or equilibrium? Limiting
factors are usually expressed as a lack of a particular resource. The factors can be biotic
or abiotic that affect an ecosystem and the organisms in it.
A limiting factor is a resource or environmental condition which limits the growth,
distribution, or abundance of organisms within an ecosystem. These factors can either be
biotic or abiotic. Biotic limiting factors include food, mates, and competition with other
organisms for resources. Space, temperature, shelter, altitude, and amount of sunlight
available in an environment are considered abiotic limiting factors. For instance, if there
are not enough food to feed a large population of consumers, then food becomes a limiting
factor. Moreover, if there is not enough space in a lake for a large number of fishes, then
space becomes a limiting factor. The limiting factors determine the carrying capacity of
a habitat. Carrying capacity refers to the maximum size of the population it can support.
If an organism, group, or population does not have enough resources to sustain it,
individuals will die through starvation, or they will fail to produce offspring. Does it affect
the biodiversity in an ecosystem? Communities with many different species (high
biodiversity) will be able to withstand environmental changes better than communities
with only a few species (low biodiversity). An increase in biodiversity also increases the
adaptability of the ecosystem to changing environmental conditions; thus, increasing

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 the population density (number of individuals in an area). This means that high
biodiversity also increases the survival of organisms in an ecosystem.
Many factors affect the loss of biodiversity. Low biodiversity can lead to species
extinction. This includes habitat destruction, overexploitation, environmental conditions
like global warming and climate change, pollution, and competition due to limited
resources. When the population of a species decreases rapidly, the species is
considered threatened. A species is considered endangered when its population is very
low. Extinction occurs when the last members of that species die.
Below are examples of endangered and threatened species in the Philippines .
Photo adapted from the Science 9
Photo adapted from the Science 9
Learner’s Module
Learner’s Module

Activity: Throwback days!

Give an example of an animal, plant or any organism that is

abundant in your place when you were young but you rarely see it
now.Explain why do you think its population decreases.

What I Have Learned

Activity: UNSCRAMBLE THE BIODIVERSITY IN ME!
Directions: Arrange the scrambled letters below to form a word/phrase by studying the
given definition. Use a separate sheet of paper for your answer.

1. BIVSODTIERIY – refers to the variety of life in a certain

area
2. OUOTAPPNLI – a group of organisms of the same species
living in a certain place.
3. ICUTMONMY - a group of organisms of different species
living together in an area.
4. DEIXN OF YITVEIRDS- a mathematical measure of
species diversity in a community.
5. CESPSEI- a level of biological classification comprising
related organisms that share common characteristics and
are capable of interbreeding
6. XTOICNITEN- this occurs when the last member of a
specie dies
7. DARENEGEND- a specie with low population and is
possible of becoming extinct
8. EDRHTNAEET- a specie whose population is decreasing
rapidly
9. ILTNPOOPAU ESNDYTI- is a measurement of
population per unit area
10. GLIITINM OFCTRSA – anything that limits the size of
a population like certain environmental conditions.

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 What I Can Do
ACTIVITY No. 3: My Backyard Biodiversity
How many different species can you find in your yard?
Total Species=
PLANTS: Look for flowers, grasses, bushes, weeds Total No. of individuals=

Total Species=
TREES: Look for different types of leaves or bark on the Total No. of individuals=
trees

TREES: Look for flying, burrowing, crawling insects or Total Species=

spider. Total N. of individuals=

Compute for the index of diversity of each community you’ve found.

Lesson
Causes of Species Extinction
2

What I Need to Know

For a moment, think about the following questions. What is your role in preserving
the balance in the ecosystem? What can you do to prevent the destruction of our
environment and how are you going to help in conserving the natural resources and
maintaining biodiversity? Find out the answers to these questions as go through the pages
of this lesson.
At the end of the lesson, you should be able to:
• identify different causes of species extinction
• name some ways of how to help slow down the rate of extinction of
species

What’s New
When a species’ population becomes so low that only a few
remain, the species is considered endangered and will possibly become
extinct. In the Philippines, some terrestrial species like the tamaraw in
Mindoro, mouse deer in Palawan, Philippine deer, Monkey-eating eagle,
and aquatic species like the dugong found in
Negros, Batangas, and Leyte are in danger of
Dugong
extinction. Sometimes, there is a particular
species that declines so fast that it becomes
endangered and is said to be threatened.
Extinction is the disappearance of a
Mouse deer
species when the last of its members die.
Changes to habitats can threaten organisms with extinction. As
populations of people increase, the impact of their growth and
development is altering the face of the Earth and pushing many other Monkey-eating eagle
species to the brink of extinction. Let’s find out the causes of extinction
by doing the following activity.

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ACTIVITY: Causes of Species Extinction
Directions: Study the picture below then answer the questions that follow.

Picture taken from https://www.thoughtco.com/reasons-animals-go-extinct-3889931

Questions:

1. What are the different causes of extinction as found in the picture?

2. As a student, which among these causes do you think you could prevent ?
3. Describe 3 ways you could do to help in slowing down the rate of extinction of
species

What is it?
Many human activities disturb the balance in the ecosystem. Examples of
these are pollution, deforestation, wildlife depletion, and destruction of coastal
resources. All of these result in ecological imbalance. Ecological imbalance happens
when there is a disturbance which is either natural or man-made disturbance that
disrupts the balance of an ecosystem.
You probably need to know more about some of the local and global
environmental issues/problems that are also affecting your community.
Deforestation
One of the country’s environmental problems is the rapid rate at which trees are cut down.
Did you encounter the same problem in your community? In the Philippines, the major
causes of deforestation are: As a consequence of cutting down
• Kaingin farming trees, the following effects could take
• Illegal logging place:
• Conversion of agricultural lands to • Soil erosion
housing projects • Floods
• Forest fires • Decrease in wildlife resources
• Typhoons that will eventually lead to
extinction
Wildlife Depletion

As human population gets bigger, huge space is needed for shelter, for growing
crops, and for industries. Deforestation is one of the major causes of the disappearance
of wildlife species. What happens to animal populations that are driven away from their
natural habitat? If they cannot find enough space, many will die or become extinct. Some
species may become endangered, or in the verge of becoming extinct. In other cases,
some animals may be threatened, referring to species whose population is decreasing
rapidly.

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Water Pollution
A major problem in lakes, rivers and ponds is eutrophication. It happens when
the concentration of organic nutrients that comes from domestic garbage and thrown in
bodies of water, increases rapidly. One of the effects of water pollution. It is supposed to
be a slow process, but man’s activities hasten it up. Another effect of water pollution is
mass death of fish, or ‘fish kill’.
Source:https://www.quora.com/What-is-eutrophication
A ‘fish kill’ usually happens when there
is an increase in concentration of organic
nutrients in bodies of water. This condition
causes algal bloom and growth of aquatic
plants. When the algae die, they sink to the
bottom and the process of decomposition
proceeds. This process uses up oxygen and as
a result, aquatic animals die due to lack of
oxygen.

Air Pollution
Do you know that cars are one of the major contributors to air pollution? Pollutants
can enter the air as gases, liquids, or solids. Cars burn fuel and produce harmful gases–
carbon dioxide, nitrogen oxides, and hydrocarbons.

In Metro Manila where a great volume of cars travels each day, smog blankets the
area, nitrogen oxides and hydrocarbons from car exhausts react with water vapor or dust
particles and produce new irritating chemicals. Carbon dioxide acts like a blanket over
the Earth, holding in the heat that would otherwise radiate back into space. The trapping
of heat by gases in the earth’s atmosphere is called greenhouse effect.
The greenhouse effect is a natural process. But as carbon dioxide in the
atmosphere increases, greenhouse effect also intensifies–this will lead to global warming.
Global warming is an increase in the earth’s temperature from the rapid buildup of
carbon dioxide and other gases. This, in turn, could change the world climate patterns.

ACTIVITY: Reflect and deflect!

Directions: Look at the given picture below. Observe the differences of the pictures
by describing it in 5-7 sentences. Reflect on the effects of human activities in the loss of
biodiversity and name some ways on how it can be prevented.

Image is created using canva.com

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 What’s More

Activity: Cause -----→ Effect

Read each scenario. Decide if the organism is Thriving, Endangered, Extinct, or
Threatened. Write you answer in the box beside the scenario. Explain why you choose
your answer.

What I Have Learned

Activity: Fill in the blanks the needed word/ phrase to complete the
information you’ve learned from this lesson.

1. ________________ occurs when the last member of a species dies.

2. When the population of a species begins declining rapidly, the species is said to be
a ___________________ species.
3. A species is ________________ when its population is so low that it is nearly extinct.
4. The principal causes of deforestation are _______________, ___________ farming,
forest fires, and conversion of agricultural lands to housing projects, and typhoon.
5. The effects of deforestation include __________, floods, and depletion of wildlife
resources.
6. The major cause of wildlife depletion is the ______ __ _______.
7. In _______, nutrients are washed away from the land to enrich bodies of water. It
causes excessive growth of aquatic plants and algae and results in __________,
which eventually die and decompose. The process depletes the oxygen dissolved in
water, causing fish and other aquatic organisms to die.
8. __________ is a result of air pollution mostly from factories and motor vehicles.

What I Can Do
Human activities and overpopulation have caused most of the environmental
problems nowadays. People are beginning to realize that the way they interact with the
environment must change to ensure the survival of all living things. This is one big
challenge to maintain the resources needed for survival while ensuring that they will still
be available in the future. This is a practice called sustainable development. This means
that a sustainable society should live under the carrying capacity of the environment.

Activity: Plant a tree, plant a hope!

One great activity that a student like you can do to help solve the problem
on scarcity of resources and maintain sustainable environment is tree planting. Your task
is to join us for a backyard planting activity while encouraging others to do also. To do
such, take a picture of yourself planting any type of tree seedling in your backyard and

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post it in your Facebook account using the hashtag #plantatreeplantahope. Let us create
a community of tree planters online!

Assessment: (Posttest)
MULTIPLE CHOICE. Read and answer the questions in the best way you can. Write
the letter of your answer a separate sheet of paper.

1. Which of the following best describes biodiversity?

a. Biodiversity refers to the variety of life in an area.
b. Biodiversity refers to the variety of non-living things in an ecosystem
c. Biodiversity refers to the interaction of livings in different ecosystems
d. Biodiversity refers to the similarities of organisms living in an ecosystem
2. The following are types of biodiversity except one.
a. Genetic diversity b. Species diversity c. Ecological diversity d. Community

3. It relates to variety of habitats, biotic communities and ecological processes in

the biosphere, and is considered as complex level of diversity.
a. Genetic diversity b. Species diversity c. Ecological diversity d. Community
4. It refers to total genetic information contained in the genes of individuals of
plants, animals and microorganisms.
a. Genetic diversity b. Species diversity c. Ecological diversity d. Community
5. Which of the following is true about low and high index of diversity in a
community?
a. A community with a very high index of diversity has a very low chance of
survival if environmental changes occur.
b. A community with a very low index of diversity has a very high chance of
survival if environmental changes occur.
c. A community with very low index of diversity is more at risk of extinction if
environmental changes occur while a community with very high index of
diversity has a better chance survival and adapting to changes in the
environment.
d. It doesn’t matter whether the community has low of high index of diversity
when it comes to adapting to changes in the environment.
6. Biodiversity can affect the ________ of ecosystems and the _________ of
populations.
a. sustainability and stability c. stability and sustainability
b. life and existence d. existence and life
7. The average temperature of the earth’s atmosphere may rise as a result of
a. Greenhouse effect b. garbage dumping c. water pollution d. air pollution

8. If 40 carabaos live in a 1 ½ sq. m area, what is their population density per sq.
km?
9. How many monkeys would have to live in a ¾ sq. km. area to have the same
population density as the carabao?
10. Suppose 60 ants live in a 4 sq. m plot of grass. What would be the population
density of the ants? What would the population density be if 100 ants live in an
8 sq. m plot of grass?

Congratulations! You have finished Module 5! You may

now proceed to Module 6!
Keep learning!
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 10
Science - Grade 9 Teacher’s Guide (FEP Printing Corporation, 2014),
Science - Grade 9 Learner’s Module (FEP Printing Corporation, 2014), 50-71.
https://www.our7107islands.com/sunflower-maze-in-tayug-pangasinan/
Sunflower Maze in Tayug Photo
species_b_58bd9c87e4b0abcb02ce2067
https://www.huffpost.com/entry/12-things-we-should-all-do-to-protect-endangered-
https://www.quora.com/What-is-eutrophication
Eutrophication
https://www.thoughtco.com/reasons-animals-go-extinct-3889931
Causes of Species Extinction
https://coraldestructionphilippines.weebly.com/sustaining-the-environment.html
What I have Learned
BOLINAO CORAL SYSTEM Photo
https://byjus.com/biology/biodiversity/
Activity : Fill in the blanks
Biodiversity and Its Types
1. Extinction
References
2. threatened
3. endangered
4. illegal logging, kaingin
5. soil erosion What’s more
6. loss of habitat
7. eutrophication, algal bloom Activity : Cause-> effect
8. acid rain 1. Endangered
What’s new 2. Extinct
3. Threatened
Activity : CAUSES OF SPECIES EXTINCTION
1. Asteroid strikes, Loss of habitat, Climate change, Disease, Lack of What I have Learned
food, Lack of
genetic diversity, Pollution, Invasive species, Human predation, Better Activity: UNSCRAMBLE
adapted THE BIODIVERSITY IN ME
competition (answers on description may vary ) 1. BIODIVERSITY
2. Possible answers: loss of habitat, climate change, human predation, 2. POPULATION
pollution 3. COMMUNITY
3. Possible answers: 4. INDEX OF DIVERSITY
• Educate your family about endangered species in your 5. SPECIES
area. 6. EXTINCTION
• Recycle and buy sustainable products. 7. ENDANGERED
• Grow native plants 8. THREATENED
• Reduce your water consumption 9. POPULATION DENSITY
• Reduce your personal footprint. 10. LIMITING FACTORS
• Do not buy plastic products
• Do not purchase products from companies that are What’s more
known polluters.
• Herbicides and pesticides are hazardous pollutants
Activity: Throwback days!
that affect wildlife at many levels.
(Answers may vary)
What is it
Activity: Reflect and deflect
(Answers may vary) What I can Do
Lesson 2: CAUSES OF SPECIES EXTINCTION Activity: My backyard
biodiversity
(Answers may vary)
What’s new 1. A 1. A
2. D 2. A
Activity : check your understanding 3. C 3. B
1. Biodiversity
4. A 4. D
2. D
5. C 5. A
3. B
4. A- genetic diversity 6. B 6. B
B- Species diversity 7. A 7. C
C- Ecosystem diversity 8. 26 carabaos/ m2 8. C
What is it 9. 19 or 20 9. A
Community A carabaos/m2 10. A
Index of diversity = # of species = 8/9= 0.88 ( high) 10. 15 ants/m2, 12 or 13
Total # of individuals ants/m2
Community B
Index of diversity = # of species = 2/9= 0.22 ( low) Posttest Pretest
Total # of individuals
Lesson 1: BIODIVERSITY AND POPULATION Key to Answers
Name: ____________________ Date: ________
Section: ____________________ Score: _______

Worksheet No. 5
SCIENCE 9 QUARTER 1 MODULE 5
MOST ESSENTIAL LEARNING COMPETENCY:
Relate species extinction to the failure of populations of organisms to
adapt to abrupt changes in the environment (S9LT-Ie-f-30)

Modified True or False

Instructions: Write TRUE if the statement is correct. If the statement is false,
change the underlined word by writing the correct answer on your paper.

1. Biodiversity is a compound word derived from ‘biological diversity’. It is a

term used to describe the variety of living things on earth.
2. A community is a group of living things within a certain area that are all of
the same species.
3. A population of one kind does not affect a population of another kind
within the community.
4. Ecosystem Diversity is considered as a complex level of diversity.
5. Scientists use a formula called the population index to describe the
amount of species diversity in a given area.
6. A community with very low index of diversity is more at risk of extinction if
environmental changes occur.
7. A community with very high index of diversity consisting of many species
has a better chance of including individuals that might be able to adapt to
changes in the environment.
8. An ecosystem is a community of organisms interacting with the physical
environment.
9. An ecosystem is composed only of biotic (living) components.
10. Limiting factors are usually expressed as a lack of a particular
resource which can be biotic or abiotic that affect an ecosystem and the
organisms in it.
11. An increase in biodiversity also increases the adaptability of the
ecosystem to changing environmental conditions; thus, increasing
the population density
12. High biodiversity decreases the survival of organisms in an
ecosystem.
13. Low biodiversity can lead to species extinction.
14. When the population of a species decreases rapidly, the species is
considered endangered.
15. A species is considered threatened when its population is very low.
16. Extinction occurs when the last members of that species die.
17. Ecological imbalance happens when there is a disturbance that
disrupts the balance of an ecosystem.
18. The trapping of heat by gases in the earth’s atmosphere is called
greenhouse effect.
19. Global warming is an increase in the earth’s temperature from the
rapid buildup of carbon dioxide and other gases in the atmosphere.
20. Greenhouse effect is a man-made process.

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