Digos City National High School

SCIENCE 10

Name: ____________________________ Grade & Section: _______________ Date: ___________

Topic: Biodiversity and Stability

Learning Competency: Explain how species diversity increases the probability of
adaptation and survival of organisms in changing
environments (S10LT-IIIh-41).
Objectives:
1. Explain how species diversity increases the probability of
adaptation.
2. Identify the survival of organisms in changing
environments.
Concepts:

Biodiversity describes how varied our life forms in different ecosystem. The Philippines is one of 18 mega-
biodiverse countries of the world, containing two-thirds of the earth’s biodiversity and between 70% and 80% of the
world’s plant and animal species. Greater biodiversity in ecosystems, species and individuals leads to greater stability,
wherein it can maintain structure, and function over long periods of time despite disturbances. Most ecologists believe that
the lower the biodiversity the lower the stability of an ecosystem. In other words, the higher the biodiversity, the greater
the stability of the ecosystem.
Every organism has a unique ecosystem within which it lives-its natural habitat. This is where its basic needs to
survive are met: food, water, shelter from the changing weather and climate and place to breed its offspring. Habitats are
constantly changing and evolving. Animals living within must constantly adapt to environmental changes, big or small.
Adaptations are any behavioral or physical characteristics of an organism that help it to survive in its
environment. It is all about survival. When the environment dramatically changes, some animals move to other places,
others die, and some develop adaptations over generations to survive.
Animals have variety of ways to adapt to their environment. These include:
1. Structural or Physical or using body structures to help an animal survive.

a. Camouflage - a defense mechanism or tactic that the organisms use to disguise their appearance, usually to blend in
with their surroundings.

b. Mimicry - ability of an organism to imitate and copycat another species in

terms of sound, appearance, smell, behavior, or location to protect itself. It also
refers to the resemblance of an animal species to another species or to natural
objects.

c. Chemical defenses-include substances utilized by prey which are harmful to invading organisms.
d. Body coverings- cover the body and protect animals from external factors.

2. Behavioral or how animals respond or act to life needs. Behavioral adaptation could be instinctive or happen
naturally.

a. Hibernation- when animals bare sleep as a response to cold weather and survive the cold winter.

b. Migration-a behavioral adaptation that involves an animal or group of animals travelling from one place to another and
then back again when seasons change.

c. Learned Behaviors - These animal behaviors are obtained and acquired by

interacting with the environment and cannot be passed on to the next
generation except by teaching. Examples are swimming, playing, walking,
jumping, etc.

Each adaptation has been produced by evolution. This only means that the adaptations have developed over many
generations. Adaptations of species of plants and animals in their environment could result to high biodiversity.
This time, let us analyze the pictures and their different forms of adaptation.
ACTIVITY 1: MATCH my FORMS!
Directions: Match the words in Column B (forms of adaptation) and the related use of adaptation in Column C with the
pictures in Column A. Write the letter and number (in Roman Numeral) for coding your answer.
An example below is given as your guide.

A CODED B C
Picture ANSWER Form of Use of Adaptation
Adaptation
B. Hibernation II. This animal uses
_____ ______ It’s very long neck as
an adaptation to
feeding at high
levels in the
treetops.

C. Structural III. This enables the

animal to experience.
_____ ______ 2. long deep sleep
over
the cold months.

D. Camouflage IV. This defense

mechanism helps this
______ ______ animal to be
unnoticed and to hide
from its
predators by blending
in with the
surroundings.

E. Mimicry V. This animal has

the ability to copycat
______ ______ and imitate traits
from other animals,
to fool its predators
and be able to live
longer.

Now that you can identify the different forms of adaptation, we will try to examine if what would happen if an
animal’s habitat changed due to climate change or
destruction? How could it adapt to survive in a new habitat? Could it move to another
habitat? Let’s find out by answering the next activity.
ACTIVITY 2: The Struggle is Real! Adapt, Migrate or Die?
Directions: Identify which species of plants or animals will be able to survive, migrate and die. An example has been
given as your guide.

Environmental Change Which species of plants or animals will be able to…

Adapt/Survive? Migrate? Die?
EXAMPLE: brown beetles birds green beetles
Three birds loved to eat
beetles especially the green
(female) and the brown
(male). But their favorites are
the green beetles.
Generations later, green
beetles have been selected.
and brown beetles have
increased in number.

1. In a food web, the grass is the

producer. Rabbits, insects,
and snails all eat grass. For an
uncertain reason, the population
of insects decreased.

2. Insecticides are sprayed

over a large area in an effort
to reduce the number of
grasshoppers that are eating
the corn plants. Lizards that
eat grasshoppers and hawks
which eat lizards are also
inhabiting the place.
3. In a farm, soybeans were the
only crop that was planted
on several hectares of land. A
farmer noticed that a fungus was
growing all over the soybean
fields.
4.Forests are home to an
amazing diversity of animals.
Trees for most animals serve
as place for resting, nesting,
hunting, storing food and
taking shelter in extreme
weather. Some of the
animals that depend on trees
include monkeys,
kangaroos, birds, squirrels,
geckos, flying snakes, to
name a few. After a period of
time, most of the trees were
cut down.

How did you find the activity? Have you realized how changes in the environment can cause some species of
plants and animals to die (become extinct), move to new locations (migrate) or ensure survival (adapt)?

SUMMARY:

Biodiversity benefits people in many ways and it affects the stability of an ecosystem: the greater the biodiversity,
the more chances that stability can be attained in an ecosystem. Every organism has a unique ecosystem within which it
lives-its natural habitat that is constantly changing and evolving. Changes in the habitat of organisms cause either increase
or decrease in biodiversity that’s why animals living within must constantly adapt to environmental changes, big or small.
Adaptation is all about survival. When the environment dramatically changes, some animals move to other
places, others die, and some develop adaptations over generations to survive. Each adaptation has been produced by
evolution. This only means that the adaptations have developed over many generations. Adaptations of species of plants
and animals in their environment could result to high biodiversity.

References:
1. Science 10 Learner’s Material, Department of Education
2. Science 10 ADM, Module 8: Biodiversity and Stability First Edition, 2020

Modified by:

Vema M. Abueva
Jo Ann F. Cadayona

This worksheet is exclusive for Digos City National High School use only.