Bring Science Alive! 7th Grade Integrated U7 Performance Assessment

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RESOURCES IN ECOSYSTEMS PERFORMANCE ASSESSMENT

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Changing Resources for Cichlid Fish

Science and neering Prac Engi tice s

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Recently, your zoo opened a hall of fish diversity. One huge tank is devoted to freshwater fish from African lakes. These cichlids are diverse in look and behavior. You need to make sure each species gets the resources it needs.

The cichlids have lived in the zoo for a year with no problems. But when they were moved from small species-specific tanks into the large shared tank, some became unhealthy.

In this performance assessment, you will figure out how to make the cichlids healthy again.

Performance Assessment Requirements Your recovery plan should take the form of a talk that includes the following points: • What problem did you face?

• What changed when the new tank was created?

• What positive and negative interactions led to population changes in the new tank?

• Describe how you solved the problem, and include a timeline of ecosystem changes.

• A statement predicting patterns of interactions among organisms across multiple ecosystems based on what you learned.

• An argument supported by empirical evidence that changes to components of an ecosystem affect populations.

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Changing Resources for Cichlid Fish

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_____ Step 1: Analyzing Data on Behavioral Changes Describe what the bar graph entitled “Change in Food Eaten by Species” shows.

Change in Food Eaten by Species Before

After

4.5 4

Food Eaten (g/fish/day)

3.5 3 2.5 2 1.5 1 0.5 0

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Which species changed their eating behavior after switching to the new tank?

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Examine the bar graph entitled “Change in % Time Agitated Swimming.” What does it show?

Change in % Time Spent Agitated Swimming Before

After

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% Time Agitated Swimming

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Which species changed their agitated swimming behavior after switching to the new tank?

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Are all species equally affected by the change? Explain.

Do you think the fish that are not eating are being deprived of the food they need?

_____ Step 2: Identifying Changes in the Ecosystem How do you think you can figure out what is causing the problems with the new tank?

What ecosystem changes do you think might be harmful to the cichlid populations?

How could you test whether a certain ecosystem factor is the reason some cichlid populations are declining in the new tank environment?

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_____ Step 3: Researching Species Needs Look at the list of species that showed behavioral change after moving tanks. What resource needs are shared by most of these species, but not the other species?

Are any traits shared by most of these species, but not the other species?

What species interactions might occur between these small cichlid species and the other larger ones?

Brainstorm possible reasons that only certain populations are in decline.

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_____ Step 4: Developing a Solution Fill in the table about species interactions. Write in where competition, predation, mutualism, and commensalism fit.

Populations A&B

- For Population A

+ For Population A

0 For Population A

- For Population B + For Population B 0 For Population B

How do competition, predation, and commensalism impact each population involved in these types of interactions?

Do you think any interactions in the tank fit into these categories? How would this impact each species?

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Identify one or more resources that you can add or remove.

Identify one or more changes that you can make to the abiotic or biotic factors.

Describe any species interactions that you would expect to change as a result of your solution.

Describe the cause and effect relationship you used to make your prediction.

Pick one or more of these changes that you think could solve the problems in the tank, and write them out here.

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Describe any species interactions that you would expect to change as a result of your solution.

How would you test whether your solution was effective?

Look at this graph. What would a third category of data, showing behavioral measures after introducing your solution, look like? Draw these bars in to the graph.

Change in % Time Spent Agitated Swimming Before

After

Post-Solution

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% Time Agitated Swimming

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How does this graph represent each population’s response to resource availability?

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_____ Step 5: Communicating Your Results Draw a timeline (similar to the ones you worked on in Lesson 3) that demonstrates the sequence of changes that occurred in the tank ecosystem. Include this in your presentation.

Answer these questions to help you plan your presentation.

• What problem did you face?

• What changed in the ecosystem when the new tank was created?

• What interactions led to population changes in the new tank?

• How did you solve the problem?

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Write out a statement predicting patterns of interactions among organisms across multiple ecosystems based on what you learned.

Write out an argument supported by empirical evidence that changes to components of an ecosystem affect populations.

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Performance Assessment Rubric Use the rubric to evaluate your work on this Performance Assessment.

Achievement Levels Dimension Science and Engineering Practices Analyzing and Interpreting Data Analyze and interpret data to provide evidence for phenomena.

Constructing Explanations and Designing Solutions Construct an explanation that includes qualitative or quantitative relationships between variables that predict phenomena.

Engaging in Argument from Evidence Construct an oral and written argument supported by empirical evidence and scientific reasoning to support of refute an explanation or a model for a phenomenon or a solution to a problem.

Crosscutting Concepts Cause and Effect Cause and effect relationships may be used to predict phenomena in natural or designed systems.

Patterns Patterns can be used to identify cause and effect relationships.

Stability and Change Small changes in one part of a system might cause large changes in another part.

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Proficient (2 points)

Emergent (1 point)

Not Present (0 points)

Analyzed and interpreted graphs to understand how access to resources impacted cichlid populations.

Analyzed graphs with some errors of interpretation.

Did not analyze or interpret graphs.

Designed a solution to the competition for resources that was disrupting fish populations.

Attempted to design a solution to the competition for resources disrupting fish populations.

Did not design a solution to the competition for resources disrupting fish populations.

Used empirical evidence to support an argument that changes to an ecosystem affect populations.

Made an argument but did not use empirical evidence to support it.

Did not make an argument.

Predicted the effects of changing the resources available in the group tank.

Predicted the effects of introduction but with errors.

Did not predict how introducing more resources would impact the tank.

Described a consistent pattern of interactions represented in the fish tank ecosystem.

Described a consistent pattern but with errors.

Did not descibe a consistent pattern.

Described a change that harmed fish populations in the new tank, and a change that helped them.

Described changes, but with errors.

Did not describe changes to the tank ecosystem.

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Achievement Levels Dimension

Proficient (2 points)

Emergent (1 point)

Not Present (0 points)

Disciplinary Core Ideas

Composed a statement describing how competition for resources impacts cichlid populations.

Composed a statement about competition for resources with errors.

Did not make a statement about resource competition.

Described how the patterns of interactions in the tank ecosystem are consistent with patterns that occur in other ecosystems.

Described how patterns of interactions are consistent across ecosystems with some errors.

Did not describe patterns of interactions across ecosystems.

Made an argument that a change to an ecosystem led to population disruptions in the ecosystem.

Made an argument about the impact of ecosystem change, but with errors.

Did not make an argument about the impact of ecosystem change.

Interdependent Relationships in Ecosystems Organisms, and populations of organisms, are dependent on their environmental interactions both with other living things and with nonliving factors.

Similarly, predatory interactions may reduce the number of organisms or eliminate whole populations of organisms. Mutually beneficial interactions, in contrast, may become so interdependent that each organism requires the other for survival. Although the species involved in these competitive, predatory, and mutually beneficial interactions vary across ecosystems, the patterns of interactions of organisms with their environments, both living and nonliving, are shared.

Ecosystem Dynamics, Functioning, and Resilience Ecosystems are dynamic in nature; their characteristics can vary over time. Disruptions to any physical or biological component of an ecosystem can lead to shifts in all its populations.

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