1. Simulating Biodiversity
Name: _______________________
Date: ________________________
Pd. _______
Simulating Biodiversity
In this game, you are responsible for the care of a community of bird and plant populations. You will have cards describing species of birds and plants. Your role in the game is to watch your community and keep track of the numbers of each species as the game progresses. Your teacher will read events that describe things that might happen in your city. For each event, there is a consequence. After each event, one member of your group will record the effects of that event on the data table. After all the event have happened, we’ll take a look at the different groups and communities.
Your teacher will provide you with your initial community; number of species and number of individuals of each species.
Do you think your community will survive the different changes in the city? Explain.
Procedure
Record the starting number for each species of bird and plant in the data table.
As your teacher reads each event, record your results in the table. If an event requires that half of your species be removed, round up to the nearest whole number.
Below each column, you will record the richness and abundance of birds and plants. Richness is the number of species present in your ecosystem. Abundance is the total number of individuals in that group.
Compare the “health” of your ecosystem with other groups in the class. Compare species richness and abundance.
Bird Data
Starting
Event 1
Event 2
Event 3
Event 4
Event 5
Event 6
Event7
American crow
Song sparrow
Dark-eyed junco
American robin
Black-capped chickadee
BIRD RICHNESS
BIRD ABUNDANCE
Plant Data
Starting
Event 1
Event 2
Event 3
Event 4
Event 5
Event 6
Event7
Summersweet clethra
Winterberry
Black chokecherry
Green ash
Eastern white pine
PLANT RICHNESS
PLANT ABUNDANCE

2. Conclusions
Record the starting and ending abundance and richness of birds below:
Record the starting and ending abundance and richness of plants below:
Examine the results from your table. How healthy was your community? What data leads you to believe this?
How could the overall health of your plant community impact the health of your bird community? Explain.
How did the initial species richness, evenness, and abundance of individuals for the communities affect the results of the game? What were characteristics of the “healthiest” communities?
How will the remaining bird and plant species interact? Will they be of benefit to each other? What do you think the future of this community will look like?
Look back at the events you recorded in your table. Which of the events were caused by the activities of people? Did you think those events were positive or negative, and why?
How could the introduction of an invasive species of bird or plant who is a generalist impact the biodiversity of your community? Explain.
Richness-
Starting:
Ending:
Abundance-
Starting:
Ending:
Richness-
Starting:
Ending:
Abundance-
Starting:
Ending:

3. Bird Profiles Bird: Black-capped Chickadee Habitat:
Deciduous woodlands and parks
Nesting:
In holes found typically in dead trees or rotten branches; will use nest boxes
Diet:
Insects, spiders, fish, berries, and seeds
Predators:
Hawks and owls. Eggs and young may be eaten by snakes, weasels, mice, chipmunks, and squirrels
Bird: Dark-eyed Junco
Habitat:
Woodland areas with dense, herbaceous ground cover
Nesting:
Ground nester
Diet:
Seeds and insects
Predators:
Hawks, owls, and feral and domestic cats. Red squirrels, weasels, chipmunks, and other mammals take eggs and young from nests
Bird: Song Sparrow
Habitat:
Open brush, usually along borders of ponds or streams, abandoned pastures, thickets, or woodland edges
Nesting:
Ground nester
Diet:
Seeds, grains, grass, berries, and on some occasions, insects
Predators:
Hawks and other birds of prey. Eggs and young may be eaten by snakes, raccoons, skunks, cats, and weasels
Bird: American Crow
Habitat:
Thrive in suburban neighborhoods & urban parks
Nesting:
Nests are built in sturdy trees, such as pines
Diet:
Insects, worms, fruits, grains, mice, eggs, and nestlings of smaller songbirds; will also eat food discarded by people
Predators:
Red-tailed hawks, great horned owls raccoons, humans, snakes, domestic cats
Bird: American Robin
Habitat:
Woodlands, gardens, orchards, lawns, and fields
Nesting:
In dense bushes, in the crotch of trees, or on window ledges or other human structures
Diet:
Fruits, berries, earthworms, and insects
Predators:
Hawks, cats, larger sakes. Eggs and young are often eaten by squirrels, snakes, birds such as blue jays, common grackles, and American crows.

4. Plant Profiles Shrub: Black chokecherry
Native to the eastern United States and adjacent southern Canada
Fruit is eaten by birds but not before more desirable species have been consumed
Adaptable to many conditions
Tolerant of both dry and wet soils
Tolerant of poor soils
Shrub: Winterberry
Native to the eastern and central United States and parts of Canada
Bright red and glossy berries, held well into winter
Birds will eat fruit
Tree: Eastern white pine
Tallest tree in eastern North America, often over 30.5 m
(100 feet) tall  
Seldom killed by nature unless it is very small
Black-capped chickadees eat its seeds
Tree: Green ash
Native to the eastern United States
Borers can be a serious pest when plant is young
Seeds are eaten by birds
10.7 m (35 feet) to 19.8 m (65 feet) tall
Shrub: Summersweet clethra
An upright deciduous shrub
1.5 m (5 feet) to 2.4 m (8 feet) tall and 1.2 m (4 feet) to 1.8 m (6 feet) wide
Native along the entire Eastern United States
Most commonly found in moist woodlands, especially near water