Year 11 Biology

Module 3: Biological
Diversity
Effects of the Environment on
Organisms
Inquiry question: How do environmental pressures
promote a change in species diversity and abundance?
 Contents – Effects of the Environment on Organisms
Inquiry question: How do environmental pressures promote a change in species
diversity and abundance?

1. Selection Pressures
2. Examples of Selection Pressures
3. Crown-of-Thorns Starfish: Change to Population Due to Selection Pressures – Case
Study
 Selection Pressures
Selection pressures are external factors that affect an organism’s ability to survive in a given environment.

Selection pressures can be negative (decreases the occurrence of a trait in a population) or positive
(increases the proportion of a trait in a population)

Selection pressures may not remain constant, leading to changes in what constitutes a beneficial
adaptation.

1. Selection pressures may be classified as biotic (living) or abiotic (non-living). Complete the table using
the words listed below. Include any others you can think of.

Examples of Selection Pressures

Biotic Abiotic

predators, prey/food, shelter, food, disease/pathogens, climate, pollutants, nutrients

2. For each of the following examples identify:

(i) The selection pressure and whether it is abiotic or biotic.
(ii) The organism/s in the environment and the effect on the population (i.e. trait that increases/decreases).

(a) A classic example of selection pressure in action is the case of the peppered moth. Until the middle
of the 19th century, almost all specimens of this insect were light colored. It spent a lot of its time
resting on tree trunks, and blended in well with the light colored lichens that grew there. In urban
areas, however, industrial pollution began to kill off the lichens, and darken the tree trunks with soot.
A dark form of the moth that was better camouflaged rapidly became more common, until almost all
specimens collected in urban areas were dark.
(b) Attempts by humans to control undesirable organisms can sometimes result in a selection pressure
that leads to new forms that are resistant to the methods used. For example, insect pests that are
resistant to insecticides, and weeds that are unaffected by herbicides have been seen to emerge.
(c) Some other examples of man’s influence are more worrying. The widespread use of antibiotics has
resulted in some disease-causing bacteria to evolve into strains that are resistant to many of these
compounds.
(d) People that live in places with strong sunlight, like near the equator, are likelier to survive and
reproduce if they have dark skin to protect them from UV damage. Strong sunlight is a selective
pressure that favours darker-skinned people; lighter skin would be a disadvantage in these regions.
(e) In a cold climate, animals need certain characteristics to survive, like a warm furry coat, the ability to
make burrows to live in and the ability to collect and store food for the winter. Cold weather means
that animals that don't have these characteristics are less likely to survive and reproduce.
(f) In a hot, dry climate, plants will have an advantage if they have characteristics such as the ability to
store water, large root systems to absorb what little water is in the soil and, perhaps, ways to
prevent water loss even at high temperatures.
(g) And what about food and energy sources? In a dense rainforest, plants on the forest floor will
survive and reproduce better if they are able to gather as much light as possible, perhaps by having
very large leaves. What about animals and food? Sharp teeth and the ability to hunt prey are
advantages for carnivores.

Examples of Selection Pressures

1. Consider the following selection pressures on wombats.
Classify each selection pressure as being primarily abiotic or biotic.

(a) Soil erosion can damage wombat burrows and reduce available
areas for them to dig new burrows.
(b) Higher temperatures restrict wombat activity, with a tendency for
them to remain in their burrows to stay cool.
(c) Wombats rely on availability of native grasses as a food source.
(d) Wombats are usually solitary animals, and can act aggressively
towards other wombats. They warn off other wombats using low,
guttural growls.
(e) Introduced foxes have become predators for wombats.
(f) Wombats need sufficient oxygen gas to be available in their ecosystem for cellular
respiration.
(g) Mange mites can bite wombats and live as parasites on them. This causes itchiness, and in
some cases, poor vision, reduced eating and eventually death.
(h) Snow occurs in some wombat habitats. Most wombats can remain active in snowy areas,
as they have adaptations to stay sufficiently warm.
(i) Wombats that are exposed to domestic livestock can become infected with liver fluke
(which is common in farmed sheep).

2. Consider the following scenario to answer the questions below.

A lightly wooded forest near some farms has been home to several
clutches of barn owls (Tyto alba) for a number of years. These owls
typically live in tree hollows, caves or dense trees. These owls feed on
small mammals such as mice, as well as eating insects and lizards.
Recently, permission was given for the trees in this forest to be culled to
make way for more agricultural land.

(a) Identify the selection pressure acting on the barn owls.

(b) Is this selection pressure abiotic or biotic?
(c) Make predictions about how this selection pressure might affect this population of barn
owls.

3. Use the following information to answer the questions below.

Alpine ecosystems in NSW and Victoria have large populations of

Bogong moths (Agrotis infusa) over the summer months. During winter
months, the moths fly to warmer in land areas. The caterpillars of the
Bogong moth (called black cutworms) are agricultural pests, causing
damage to crops. Hence pesticides are used against these moths in
breeding grounds that coincide with agricultural areas. Some black
cutworms have genetic variations that allow them to survive moderate
exposure to pesticides, while other black cutworms die from pesticide
exposure.

(a) Identify the selection pressure acting on the Bogong moths.

(b) Is this selection pressure abiotic or biotic?
(c) Make predictions of how this selection pressure might affect Bogong moth populations.
4. Use the following information to answer the questions below.

The coconut crab (Birgus latra) Has evolved over time to be capable of climbing coconut trees
to access coconuts as a food source. It has also evolved to have large, powerful claws that can
crack open coconuts. These adaptations have helped this species cope with the limited food
supplies available on the Pacific and Indian Ocean Islands on which they live.

(a) Identify a selection pressure that has acted on the coconut crab as it has evolved.
(b) Is this selection pressure abiotic or biotic?
(c) Explain how this selection pressure has impacted the evolution of this species of crab.

5. Use the following information to answer the questions below.

The common name ‘strangler fig’ can refer to a number of species,

including Ficus watkinsiana. The seeds of strangler figs germinate on
high brances of other trees. The strangler fig then grows aerial roots
downwards until the roots reach the soil. As the strangler fig continues to
grow, it surrounds the host tree, causing the host tree to eventually die.
The strangler fig then exists as a free-standing tree, often with a hollow
trunk where the host has rotted away. The evolution of this unusual
method of germination and growth in strangler figs is hypothesised to be
a response to lack of light for the fig saplings to successfully grow on the
forst floor.

(a) Identify the selection pressure that is thought to have caused species such as Ficus
watkinsiana to exist as ‘strangler figs’
(b) Is this selection pressure abiotic or biotic?
(c) Strangler figs can use a variety of other tree species as hosts. Do you think strangler figs
represent a strong or weak selection pressure on their various host species? Justify your
answer.
 Crown-of-Thorns Starfish: Change to Population Due to
Selection Pressures – Case Study
Crown-of-thorns starfish (Acanthaster planci) are marine invertebrates that feed on coral. It is a
large, multiple-armed starfish, one of the largest starfish in the world. Adult crown-of-thorns
starfish normally range in size from 25 to 35 cm. They have up to 21 arms. Although the body of
the crown of thorns has a stiff appearance, it is able to bend and twist to fit around the contours of
the corals on which it feeds. The long, sharp spines on the sides of the starfish's arms and upper
(aboral) surface resemble thorns and create a crown-like shape, giving the creature its name. The
thorn-like spines are venomous. They occur naturally on reefs throughout the Indo-Pacific
region, they prey upon hard, or stony, coral polyps and when conditions are right, they can reach
plague proportions and devastate hard coral communities.

CROWN OF THORNS STARFISH ABCTVCatalyst (2016) www.youtube.com/watch?v=-

tG60zUFW-A (11:23)

1. Outline the artificial selection pressure scientists have developed to use on the crown-of-
thorns starfish that is threatening the Great Barrier Reef.

2. Predict the long term effect of these artificial selection pressures on the vast population
numbers of crown-of-thorns starfish in the Great Barrier Reef.

3. Identify the abiotic positive selection pressure that is thought to have aided population
growth of the crown-of-thorns starfish.

4. Explain how overfishing of the giant triton snail has acted as a selection pressure on the
crown-of-thorns starfish.

5. Explain how high population numbers of the crown-of-thorns starfish acts as a selection
pressure on the coral populations of the Great Barrier Reef.