Artificial Selection Worksheet
Explore the concept of artificial selection, its mechanisms, and its impact on various species with this Grade 9 science worksheet.
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Artificial Selection: Shaping Species
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Read each question carefully and answer to the best of your ability. Show all your work where applicable.
Artificial selection, also known as selective breeding, is a process by which humans breed other animals and plants for particular traits. This process has been used for thousands of years to produce diverse breeds of animals and varieties of plants.
Consider the image below, which shows the anatomy of a dog. While all dogs belong to the same species, Canis familiaris, they exhibit a wide range of physical characteristics due to artificial selection.
1. Which of the following best describes artificial selection?
Nature selecting organisms best suited to their environment.
Humans intentionally breeding organisms for desired traits.
Random changes in an organism's genetic code.
The survival of the fittest in a given population.
2. Which of the following is an example of artificial selection?
Bacteria developing resistance to antibiotics.
Finches on the Galapagos Islands evolving different beak shapes.
Farmers breeding cows for increased milk production.
Moths changing color to blend in with polluted trees.
3. Artificial selection is also known as breeding.
4. The process of artificial selection relies on humans choosing organisms with desirable to reproduce.
5. All domestic dogs are descended from .
6. Artificial selection always results in organisms that are better adapted to their natural environment.
True
False
7. Artificial selection can lead to new species over long periods of time.
True
False
8. Explain the main difference between artificial selection and natural selection.
9. Provide two examples of plants that have been significantly altered by artificial selection and describe the desired traits.