Investigation Task Card

Research Question: How do environmental factors affect a species’ fitness?

Roles 1. Experimental Set-Up a. Set-up the environment for each experiment 2. Timer & Measurement Organizer a. Time out 15 seconds b. Organize the counting and recording of data 3. Predator a. Eat bugs!!

Procedures 1. To simulate the environment of the bugs and the muddy logs, we will do the following experimental set-up without the predator watching: 1. Count out 15 of each color of the bugs (white, gray, black) 2. Mix up the colors and distribute them on the black file folder (the black log) 3. Make sure that there is minimal overlap in bugs

2. The timer will set the stopwatch for 10 seconds while the predator is still not looking at the muddy log. When the timer says go, the predator will open his or her eyes.

3. The predator can only use two fingers to pick up bugs. The predator should try to get as many bugs as possible in the 10 seconds, but the predator may only eat one bug at a time.

4. When the timer stops the predator, the timer should organize a count of how many of each color are left alive. Keep track of the data in a way that makes sense to your group.

5. For each remaining bug, the bug has reproduced and two more bugs of that color need to be added to the muddy log.

6. Repeat the experiment for a total of three generations (three predatorial attacks)

Data Representation – Line Graph/Scatter Plot

Your group is asked to represent your data as a line graph/scatter plot. You can organize and design your graph as your group sees fit. You can do rough draft, but please put your final draft on the large post-it paper.