Original Project
Interdependence in Ecosystems
Item IE073004: Changes in a population in a food web can affect the population of its prey (no specific organisms identified).
The diagram below shows the feeding relationships between populations of organisms L, M, and N. The arrows point from the organisms being eaten to the organisms that eat them.
Using only the relationships between the organisms shown in the diagram, which of the following statements describes what will happen to the number of Ms if most of the Ns are killed and why?
- The number of Ms will increase because there will be fewer Ns to eat them.
- The number of Ms will decrease because there will be fewer Ns for the Ms to eat.
- The number of Ms will stay the same because changes in the number of Ns will not affect them.
- More information is needed to determine what will happen to the number of Ms.
Answer Choice |
Overall |
Grades |
Gender |
Primary Language |
||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| n = 1406 |
6–8 n = 757 |
9–12 n = 643 |
Male n = 674 |
Female n = 700 |
English n = 1201 |
Other n = 167 |
||
| A. | The number of Ms will increase because there will be fewer Ns to eat them. | 63% | 59% | 68% | 65% | 62% | 64% | 63% |
| B. | The number of Ms will decrease because there will be fewer Ns for the Ms to eat. | 19% | 22% | 16% | 18% | 20% | 19% | 17% |
| C. | The number of Ms will stay the same because changes in the number of Ns will not affect them. | 9% | 9% | 9% | 7% | 10% | 9% | 9% |
| D. | More information is needed to determine what will happen to the number of Ms. | 8% | 10% | 7% | 9% | 7% | 8% | 11% |