Beak by Beak: Which Birds Survive a Drought?
Sim Lesson
Students use the Beak by Beak simulation to run a drought on an island of birds with different beak types. They predict which beak type will be most common after the drought, observe the result, and explain why. Lesson Purpose Students often think individual animals change their own bodies to survive. This predict, observe, and explain routine lets students commit to a prediction and then watch the proportions of beak types shift across generations, building toward the idea that survival depends on how well a trait matches the environment.
On an island lives a population of finches. Their beak shapes vary, and this trait is passed from parents to offspring. Each beak type is suited to eating a different food. When a drought makes some foods scarce, which finches will survive and reproduce? In this lesson, you will use the Beak by Beak simulation to run a drought on the island. You will predict which beak type has an advantage, watch how the population changes, and explain the result.
Topics and standards: Science, Biology, Extinction, Environmental Science, Life Science, Simulation, MS-LS4-6, Natural Selection, MS-LS4-4, Grades 6-8, Evolution & Species Dynamics, TEKS Science 7.13.D, 8-LS4-3, Beak & Seed Island, SC.5.L.15.1, 3.1.6-8.S, 3.1.6-8.T