Biodiversity is the degree of variation of life. Environments around the planet have a variety of biodiversity, often environments near the equator have more diversity than others. The maintaining of biodiversity is essential to the survival of the ecosystem; a loss in a single species can have drastic effects on all organisms in the ecosystem. Coral reefs are often one of the biologically diverse ecosystems on the planet. However, they are and recently have been severely effected by human disturbances. In this unit we will learn how to sample habitats in order to examine the effects of non-native invasive species in our local habitats.
Unit Standards
Engineering & Design I can design, evaluate, and refine a solution for reducing the impacts of human activities on the environment and biodiversity (LS2-7).
I can evaluate a solution to a complex real-world problem based on prioritized criteria and trade-offs that account for a range of constraints, including cost, safety, reliability, and aesthetics as well as possible social, cultural, and environmental impacts. (ETS1-3)
Unit Question: How can you stop Oregon’s alien species invasion?