2nd Grade Science : Animal Effects on Plant Pollination
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Example Questions
Example Question #1 : Develop A Model Mimicking An Animal Dispersing Seeds
What does the term disperse mean? Example: Many animals help disperse the seeds of plants so new offspring can grow.
Spread over a wide area
Stop the movement of
Eat something
To encourage
Spread over a wide area
The term disperses means to spread or distribute over a wide area. Animals spread the seeds of plants over broad areas to help new plants begin their growth. These animals are vital to new plants being formed.
Example Question #2 : Develop A Model Mimicking An Animal Dispersing Seeds
One way that seeds travel from place to place is through animal poo! Animals eat fruits, vegetables, and plants and then spread the seeds when they exit their bodies. If you were developing a model to mimic this type of animal, which animal would you choose?
Lion
Eagle
Alligator
Bear
Bear
Animals that spread seed through their excrement (or poo) have first to eat fruits, vegetables, or plants with seeds. Lions, eagles, and alligators are carnivores meaning they only eat meat, not plants. They would not pick up seeds through their diet so they cannot spread them through poo. Bears are omnivores meaning they eat plants and meat. Bears would be the type of animal that would spread seeds through their poo.
Example Question #1 : Develop A Model Mimicking An Animal Dispersing Seeds
One way that animals disperse seeds is by collecting them. Animals like squirrels collect seeds to eat and store them away for later. Many times they bury the seeds and forget about them. They don't realize it, but they just planted a new bush, flower, or tree!
Ami has to design a model that mimics the way a squirrel disperses seeds. What is the most important feature her model must have?
The model must be able to dig.
The model must be able to sleep.
The model must be able to swim.
The model must be able to fly.
The model must be able to dig.
The most crucial feature that Ami's model could have is the ability to dig. Squirrels collect seeds and then dig holes to store the food in until later, so the model must also be able to dig holes. The squirrels forget about the seeds, and plants begin to grow. Digging a hole and placing the seeds underground it something the model should be mimicking.
Example Question #1 : Animal Effects On Plant Pollination
Some seeds are hitchhikers, which means they get stuck in an animal's fur and carried away when the animal moves. Coyotes, for example, travel long distances, and they don't even know they are dispersing seeds through the forest as they walk!
If you were making a model that mimicked an animal who carried hitchhikers, which feature would be most important for them to have?
Fur or hair
Scales
Strong teeth
A tail
Fur or hair
If a seed is a hitchhiker, it needs to attach to something to be carried around. If creating a model that mimics an animal that helps with this process, it must have the necessary features. Strong teeth and a tail are not very important to a hitchhiker's attachment or travel. Scales are slick, and the seed would not attach as well to an animal with this type of body covering. Fur or hair would be a more important feature because it gives the seed something to get stuck to so it can be carried around.
Example Question #5 : Develop A Model Mimicking An Animal Dispersing Seeds
What does the term mimic mean? Example: I built a model to mimic an animal; it can dig just like a dog!
To eat for survival
To hunt or find
To play with
To imitate or copy
To imitate or copy
The term mimic means to copy or imitate someone or something. In the case of the example, the model mimics digging like a dog. This means the model is copying the way a dog can dig and doing it the same way.
Example Question #1 : Animal Effects On Plant Pollination
Animals disperse (or spread) the seeds of plants they eat. Seeds exit the digestive system of a bat while they are flying around eating fruit from different plants. When the seeds land on the ground, new plants may be formed. How can humans mimic the bat and disperse seeds?
Eat seedless watermelon at a picnic
Put seeds in a pond in your yard
Roast pumpkin seeds to use in trail mix
Throw seeds out of a car window while driving
Throw seeds out of a car window while driving
If humans want to develop a model for mimicking a bat dispersing seeds, the best answer choice would be to throw seeds out of a car window while driving. By tossing the seeds, it gives the change for a new plant to grow when they land in the dirt outside of the car. Humans can create models and devices to mimic animals that help keep new plants growing.
Example Question #2 : Animal Effects On Plant Pollination
Which answer choice correctly uses the term mimic?
She loves to mimic her brother and do the opposite of him.
To mimic a butterfly pollinating flowers, I need to have wings and fly around.
Marge has to mimic the garlic into tiny pieces for the spaghetti recipe.
When I mimic my flowers, I always make sure to space them out and give them water.
To mimic a butterfly pollinating flowers, I need to have wings and fly around.
To mimic means to copy, impersonate, or imitate something or someone. "To mimic a butterfly pollinating flowers, I need to have wings and fly around." is the correct answer choice because it uses the word correctly. In the sentence, the author is trying to copy a butterfly pollinating flowers and would need wings to accomplish this. The other sentences use mimic incorrectly.
Example Question #3 : Animal Effects On Plant Pollination
One way that seeds travel from place to place is through animal poo! How does animal poo help to transport seeds and allow new plants to grow?
The seeds start to form new plants in the animal, so they poo out the tree or flower.
Animal poo does not help transport seeds to new locations or help plants to grow.
Animal's poo out the seeds which then go deep underground to be dug up and planted later.
The seeds pass to the poo and new plants can grow in that spot.
The seeds pass to the poo and new plants can grow in that spot.
Animals that spread seed through their excrement (or poo) have first to eat fruits, vegetables, or plants with seeds. Bears, bats, monkeys, and turtles would be the types of animals that would spread seeds through their poo. As they move around their environment, the seeds exit their digestive system and land in a new place. When this happens, the seeds are relocated and may form new plants where they land.
Example Question #4 : Animal Effects On Plant Pollination
The image below is of a spiky seedpod often nicknamed a "hitchhiker" because it attached to clothing or an animal's fur and is dispersed through the environment.
Wanda is building a model of an animal that would help disperse these spiky seeds. Which animal should she design her model after to mimic the same effect?
Alligator
Bald Eagle
Bear
Catfish
Bear
If a seed is a hitchhiker, it needs to attach to something to be carried around. If creating a model that mimics an animal that helps with this process, it must have the necessary features. Fish live underwater and are unlikely to come across these seeds. Scales are slick, so the seed would not attach as well to an alligator. Bald eagles primarily live in trees or high nests and eat meat. Fur or hair would be a more critical feature because it gives the seed something to get stuck to so it can be carried around so a bear would be the best animal to mimic.
Example Question #4 : Develop A Model Mimicking An Animal Dispersing Seeds
Animals cannot help disperse seeds unless they eat them.
False
True
False
The statement in the question is false. There are more ways animals can disperse seeds than just eating them. Examples of animals dispersing seeds without eating them include seeds getting stuck to an animal's fur and carried around, animals may bury seeds and plant new trees accidentally, or pollinators carry pollen from flower to flower. Animals do spread seeds by eating them and then excreting them in a new location in their poo, but it isn't the only way.
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