LESSON 2

How Do Organisms Change

Their Ecosystems?

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The lionfish, which occurs naturally in the Pacific Ocean, was introduced to
the Atlantic Ocean. Lionfish eat many kinds of fish and are disrupting marine
ecosystems around Florida.

By the end of this lesson . . .

you’ll understand how organisms, including newly introduced
species, affect ecosystems.

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 Explore
Can You Explain It? Online

Burmese pythons are taking over the Florida Everglades. Burmese pythons are
originally from Asia but are rapidly increasing in numbers despite attempts to
control their population.

1. How do you think pythons were first introduced into the Tip
ecosystem in Florida? Why is the population growing so quickly?
How do you think the python problem could be fixed? Learn more about how
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organisms interact
with each other in
How Do Organisms
Interact?

EVIDENCE NOTEBOOK Look for this icon to help you gather evidence
to answer the question above.

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 EXPLORATION 1

Redecorating Environments
Organisms’ Effects
All living things interact with the living and nonliving parts of their
ecosystems. When living things interact with other components of their
ecosystems and environments, they cause different kinds of effects.

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These beavers are building a dam. First, they knock down trees by
gnawing on their trunks. Then, they use the logs and branches to build
the dam. The dam slows the flow of water. This keeps the entrance to the
beavers’ home underwater, helping the beavers stay safe from predators.

2. How does the dam affect the living and nonliving parts of this ecosystem?

3. What are changes that other animals you know of make to their
habitats or ecosystems?

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 Diverse Effects
Beavers building a dam is one example of a way that living things
affect the environment. What are some other examples of effects?

These giant ant hills have thousands or millions Woodpeckers may make small changes that
of ants. Ants build their hills by moving soil, affect living parts of their environment—trees.
mud, or plant matter. The changes to the ant’s Woodpeckers use their bills to peck through tree
ecosystem are not only above ground. Ant bark to get at the insects inside. Sometimes this
colonies’ tunnels extend below ground as well. exposes the inner parts of the tree.
© Houghton Mifflin Harcourt • Image Credits: (tl) ©Henry Wrenn/Shutterstock; (tr)
©BrendaLawlor/Getty Images; (bl) ©Jason Edwards/Getty Images; (br) © AVTG

Corals affect their environment by forming the Plants carry out photosynthesis, absorbing
foundation of reefs. As coral grows and dies, the carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and
structure grows larger. If reefs are thrust upward releasing oxygen. Plant roots affect the soil they
by events on the ocean floor, or if sea levels fall, grow in. As roots grow and change shape, they
reefs can become islands. can move soil and break rock.

4. Select two of the ecosystem effects shown in the images. Explain how the
pictured effect could affect two other living things in the ecosystem that
aren’t in the picture. Include specific details in your response.

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We Cause Changes
Like all animals, humans affect their
environments. Humans cause changes
when they build places to live, work, and
go to school. Humans also change the
environment when they grow food and
make products. Pollution occurs when
human processes release wastes that affect
the land, air, or water.

Many cities contain homes, offices, roads, and Pollution caused by humans affects the
schools. Construction of these structures causes environment. It often needs to be cleaned up
major changes to the environment. to reduce damage. This person is attempting to
clean a bird that was affected by an oil spill.

© Houghton Mifflin Harcourt • Image Credits: (tl) ©Chew How Lim/EyeEm/Getty Images;
(bl) ©luoman/istock / getty Images Plus/Getty Images; (tr) ©corepics/Fotolia

Chemicals and waste products can affect an When humans cut down trees to build homes,
ecosystem when they are released. Some roads, and farms, the environment changes.
directly harm living things. Others may result Humans can also plant trees to replace trees that
in population booms of bacteria that make life were cut down.
more difficult for other organisms.

5. List two other ways humans affect the environment.

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 Engineer It!
Clean It Up!
6. Work with a partner. Research ways that humans may damage the
environment and ways humans attempt to reduce the damage afterwards.
Choose one type of change caused by humans. Using your findings, design
a machine that will reduce human impacts on the environment or will clean
up damage. Make sure you consider the following in your design:
• What type of human impact will you attempt to reduce or clean up?
• What are your constraints?
• How would you observe and measure how well your design works?
When you are done, present your findings and your design to the class.

7. Language SmArts You have learned that effects in ecosystems can be

caused by many different kinds of living things. Think about the interactions
between decomposers and other kinds of living things. In what ways do
decomposers affect the environment? What do you think would happen if all
decomposers disappeared from an ecosystem?

EVIDENCE NOTEBOOK You’ve learned how living things affect their

environment. In your Evidence Notebook, describe how Burmese
pythons might be changing the Everglades ecosystem.

Putting It Together
8. Describe a specific example that demonstrates how a plant or an animal
© Houghton Mifflin Harcourt

can affect its environment.

249
 EXPLORATION 2

Introduced and Invasive Species

New in Town
Sometimes species get introduced into an ecosystem they have
never before been a part of. These species can cause big changes to
the ecosystem.

Explore
Online

© Houghton Mifflin Harcourt • Image Credits: (tl) ©Steve Nudson/Alamy; (br) ©Justin
Kudzu is native to Asia, where its population
Kudzu vines can grow 30 centimeters per day.
Sullivan / Staff/Getty Images News/Getty Images
is controlled by insects. It was introduced to
the United States more than 100 years ago, In an attempt to control it, kudzu is sometimes
and has since become known as “the plant burned. Kudzu can also be pulled out or
that ate the south.” grazing animals can be brought in to eat it.

Newly introduced species, also known as non-native species, can cause

changes in ecosystems. In many cases, newly introduced species do not
survive well in their new ecosystem. They might not find the right food, or
the physical conditions of the ecosystem might not allow them to survive.
Sometimes, though, introduced species can thrive and take over an
ecosystem. An invasive species is an introduced species that is better able
to compete for resources than the existing species in the ecosystem. The
existing, or native, species might not be able to get what they need to survive.
Invasive species can spread rapidly, causing native species to die out.

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 Losing Balance
The images below show other kinds of plants that have invaded new
ecosystems and caused damage.

The water chestnut is an aquatic plant Brazilian elodea is an invasive aquatic plant that
introduced to ecosystems in the United States was introduced into the United States more than
more than 100 years ago. Its leaves spread on 100 years ago. It is available for sale for use in
the surface of water, blocking sunlight needed by aquariums. Elodea grows into dense mat-like
other species in the ecosystem. structures that block sunlight from other plants.
Images; (bl) ©Jim West/Alamy; (br) ©Zoonar/Peter Himmelhuber/Alamy; (tr) ©blickwinkel/
© Houghton Mifflin Harcourt • Image Credits: (tl) ©Boston Globe / Contributor/Getty

Garlic mustard, native to Europe, was brought Japanese honeysuckle is native to East Asia.
to the United States in the late 1800s for use as It was brought to the United States in the late
medicine and food. It uses up resources needed 1800s for use as a garden plant. This invasive
by native forest species. Because few animal vine grows in field and forests. Like kudzu, it
species eat this plant, it is hard to control. climbs, covers, and crowds out other plants.

9. Choose the correct words to complete each sentence.

crowd out increase decrease will will not

Koenig/Alamy

Invasive plants affect ecosystems in many ways. They can

native plants. The food supply for existing first-level consumers will
. Second- and third-level consumers
be affected.

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Animal Invasion
Animals can also be invasive species. Unlike plants, they do not
usually smother other species, but they can cause a lot of damage.

The Asian tiger mosquito arrived in the mainland Tegu lizards were probably released as pets.
part of the United States in 1985. It is a carrier for These lizards are invasive in Florida where they
several human and animal diseases. compete with native species for resources.

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Photo/Alamy; (bl) ©Paul Wood/Alamy; (br) ©reptiles4all/istock / getty Images Plus/Getty

Weber/NewsCom; (cl) ©Robbie George/National Geographic/Getty Images; (tr) ©NPS
European starlings were introduced to the Several invasive species of Asian carp are causing
United States in the 1890s. Flocks of starlings major changes in plant and animal populations
consume huge amounts of food. They often in the United States. They compete with native
destroy the nests of other bird species. species for food, and native predators aren’t able
to control the carp populations.

Images

Nutria were introduced to the United States The cane toad, native to South and Central
from South America for fur production. They America was introduced in Australia to eat pests
damage the wetlands and marshes by destroying on sugar cane. But they also eat foods needed by
vegetation. native species, and this kills predators.

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 Invasive animals can be harder to control than some invasive plants
because the animals are mobile. In environments where they can easily
camouflage themselves, they can be hard to track even if they are
relatively large, such as the Burmese python.
10. How do invasive animal populations affect ecosystems? Choose all
that apply.
a. They use food sources needed c. They change existing food
by native species. chains and food webs.
b. They add resources, such as d. They block sunlight needed by
space and water, to existing native plant species.
ecosystems.

Do the Math
Pig Populations
Wild pigs are an invasive species causing big
problems in some parts of the United States.
They eat almost anything, and they destroy
vegetation as they trample over it. They don’t
have any predators in their new ecosystems. And
the pig population is growing fast!

A female wild pig can reproduce about ten times in her lifetime.
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Each time she reproduces, she has an average of six offspring.

11. Using the information given, how many offspring can a female wild pig produce
in her lifetime? . This is the number of pigs in the second
generation.
12. If half of the pigs in the second generation are female, how many offspring could
those female pigs produce? . The offspring produced are the
third generation.
13. If half of the pigs in the third generation are female, how many offspring could they
produce in their lifetime? . The offspring produced are the
fourth generation.
Images

14. If half of the fourth generation is female, how many pigs do you think would be in the
fifth generation? .

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 Engineer It!
Toad Trap
The cane toad is an invasive species that can damage the
balance of ecosystems. Scientists have tried to develop ways to
eradicate the cane toad populations.

15. Research cane toads to learn more about their behavior, their
characteristics, and what they need to survive. Use what you
have learned to design a device to catch cane toads. The trap
should be designed with the cane toad’s specific characteristics
in mind and should include features that will help prevent the trap
from capturing other animals. Make a sketch below, and write a
description of your design. Submit your design to your teacher.

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Language SmArts
Unwelcome Guests
16. You have learned that invasive species damage the balance in ecosystems.
Select one invasive species, and write a scientific explanation of specific ways in
which this species causes changes in the ecosystem.
Getty Images

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 HANDS-ON ACTIVITY

Invasion!

Objective
Materials
Collaborate with a group to model how invasive species, such as • index cards (4)
the northern snakehead, can affect the food supply of an area. • small squares of
construction paper
What question will you investigate to meet this objective? (10 squares each
of red, blue, and
yellow paper)
• paper clips

Consider This Invasive species damage

the balance in ecosystems by disrupting
native species and using resources. The
northern snakehead is an invasive species.
It is native to Korea, China, and Russia. It
was first found in the United States in 1997.
Adult northern snakeheads eat other fish
and insects.

In what ways could a northern snakehead damage the balance in an ecosystem?

© Houghton Mifflin Harcourt • Image Credits: ©William Thomas Cain/Stringer/Getty

Procedure
STEP 1 With your group, research three
fish species found in U.S. ecosystems
affected by northern snakeheads. Write the
name of these species or draw each of them
on their own index card. On the fourth card,
Images News/Getty Images

draw a northern snakehead. Place a paper

clip on each card.

How do you think the northern snakehead

could affect the other fish species?

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STEP 2 Set out the ecosystem’s food
supply on the table in front of your group.
Fill out the table with the species you have
selected. For this activity, you can place
any of the species in any of the rows. Use
the colored construction paper squares to
represent food for the native species.

Native species Food requirement (one round)

3 blue squares, 2 red squares

3 yellow squares

3 red squares, 1 blue square

STEP 3 Allow the native fish in the

ecosystem to feed by placing the required
amount of food squares (based on the
information in the table) into the paper
clips on the index cards.

Is the ecosystem in balance? Why or

why not?

© Houghton Mifflin Harcourt

Which two native species appear to compete the most for food?

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 STEP 4 After the first round of feeding,
the northern snakehead is introduced
into the ecosystem. The snakehead can
outcompete the native species for food. To
model this, the snakehead gets to eat first.
The snakehead eats the following: 2 yellow
squares, 4 red squares, and 3 blue squares.

Record the food remaining after Round 1

in the table below, then proceed with the
second round of feeding, first with the snakehead eating what it needs,
then all of the other species trying to meet their own needs. Use the table to
keep track of how much food is left after each round and whether each species
has survived.

Did the snakehead change the ecosystem? How?

Red food Blue food Yellow food

Round Result to native species
remaining remaining remaining

3
© Houghton Mifflin Harcourt

Analyze Your Results

STEP 5 Which fish species did not have enough to eat in the second round?
Would those species have had enough to eat without the snakehead?

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STEP 6 Compare your results to the results of other groups. Describe any
similarities or differences you notice.

Draw Conclusions
STEP 7 In this activity, you observed how an invasive species changed an
ecosystem by modeling how it affected the food webs in the ecosystem.
How do you think your results would be similar or different if you modeled a
different way in which northern snakeheads affect ecosystems?

STEP 8 Did your model provide evidence supporting the argument that an
invasive species damages the balance in an ecosystem? Explain.

STEP 9 How could this activity be made more realistic in terms of the
availability of food for the native species and the invasive species? Explain.

© Houghton Mifflin Harcourt

STEP 10 What other questions do you have about the ways in which
introduced and invasive species can change ecosystems?

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 TAKE IT FURTHER

Discover More
Check out this path . . . or go online to choose one of these other paths.

Careers in • It’s News to Me!

Science & • Fantastic Field Guides
Engineering

U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Explore

Online
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers carries out many kinds of
projects. It helps build and maintain some buildings, develops
new technologies, maintains waterways, and helps when a natural
disaster strikes.
Invasive plants affect
both land and water
ecosystems. They can
disrupt the balance in
ecosystems by crowding
out native plants. This
scientist is identifying
this leaf by smelling it.
© Houghton Mifflin Harcourt • Image Credits: ©The Free Lance-Star/AP Images

Another major role of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is

conserving and protecting ecosystems from invasive species. The
Corps uses a wide variety of methods and technologies to control
invasive species. These methods include biological, mechanical,
and chemical control methods. Managing invasive species is one of
the major ways in which the Army Corps of Engineers protects the
nation’s ecosystems.

259
17. Research an invasive aquatic species.
Using what you learn, propose two possible
methods of controlling the species. At least
one of the methods should be mechanical.
This means that it should use a device or
structure to control the invasive species.
Write a description of each of your proposed
methods. Include a comparison of your
proposed methods to methods of control
that have already been tried. Then draw
a diagram or build a model of one of your
proposed methods. Explain how the method
would be applied, how it would work, and
the materials required to construct it.
Turn in your completed model and In addition to controlling invasive species,
explanation to the teacher. the U.S. Army Corp also takes care of native
species.

© Houghton Mifflin Harcourt • Image Credits: ©Add New Photographer/AP Images

260
 LESSON 2

Lesson Check Name

Can You Explain It? Explore

1. You’ve learned about ways organisms Online
affect their environments. Now explain
how the Burmese Python is affecting the
Everglades. Be sure to do the following:
• Describe how Burmese pythons were
probably introduced and could damage
the balance in the ecosystem.
• Explain methods you could use to
control the python population.
• State why your solution would effectively control the Burmese python
population without causing harm to other species.

EVIDENCE NOTEBOOK Use the information you’ve collected in your Evidence

Notebook to help you cover each point above.
© Houghton Mifflin Harcourt • Image Credits: (b) ©Lucy Fink/iStockPhoto.com; (t) ©ZUMA

Checkpoints
2. How do the animals in the photograph affect their
Press Inc/Alamy

ecosystem? Choose all that apply.

a. They
 use trees that other organisms might need
for shelter.
b. They build dams that change the flow of streams
and rivers.
c. They
 block sunlight needed by native plant species.
d. They use up the supply of oxygen in the water.
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3. Which of the following is not a way that trees affect their ecosystems?
a. reducing the number of insects by eating them
b. moving soil as root growth occurs
c. releasing oxygen into the atmosphere
d. absorbing water from the soil

4. Match each living thing to the description of how it affects the environment.

humans squirrels woodpeckers coral

Type of Living Thing How It Affects the Environment

Make holes in tree trunks to capture insects for food .

Life cycle results in growth of reef structure, which

provides food and habitat for many types of organisms.

Changes existing ecosystems by building roads,

schools, and homes.

Move and store nuts, leading to trees growing in new

locations.

5. Which of these describe(s) an invasive species? Choose all that apply.

a. better able to compete for resources than native species
b. any species that is added to a new ecosystem

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c. usually dies out rapidly in its new ecosystem
d. tends to spread rapidly and take over ecosystems
e. usually lacks predators in the new ecosystem

6. Which of these describe(s) how this invasive species, Brazilian elodea, affects
other plants in the ecosystems it enters? Choose all that apply.
a. It crowds out other plants.
b. It produces resources needed by
other plants.
c. It increases the number of native plants
in the ecosystem.
d. It blocks sunlight from plants that live
deeper in the water.

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 LESSON 2

Lesson Roundup
A. Label the effects on ecosystems as being caused by plants, animals,
or both.
moving soil as roots grow, moving materials to build homes
using water resources
adding and removing materials from the air

B. Describe one way organisms change their ecosystem.

C. Choose the correct words to complete each sentence.

introduced native invasive is is not

Species that are newly added to an ecosystem are called

species. If a newly added species can
better compete than the species that were already part of the
ecosystem, it could become an species.
Adding a new species to an ecosystem to control another species
is usually the best solution.
© Houghton Mifflin Harcourt

D. Write native or invasive before each description that describes the species.
is established in an ecosystem
upsets the balance in an ecosystem
may have population explosions
is better able than other species to compete for resources
in an ecosystem

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