Name: Sage Campbell

Right Beak for the Job

Lab Report
Adaptive Radiation, Adaptations, and
Natural Selection

You're part of a group of Rose Finches that got blown off course. Your
group manages to find an island. That island has no birds on it. Your
group’s ​genotype​ consists of many beak variety ​alleles​. Three of these
beak ​phenotypes​ are:

1. A probing beak
2. A sipping beak
3. A cracking beak

This island also has a variety of food options such as insects, nectar, and
seeds.

These ​resources​ look yummy and so all the birds try out all of the different
resources.

Unfortunately, all the birds have beaks that look very similar with only slight
differences. The differences are small right now, but let’s see how even
those slight differences can lead to ​adaptive radiation​.

Let's find out how successful the birds are with different resource ​niches
and what might happen to them over time.

Directions:​​ In the time allotted collect as many food items as possible

Round #1 - Probing Beak (Tweezers)
Food Source Collection Number or Number or Number of
Time Amount of Amount of food Offspring
Collected items collected Produced
Food to
Produce 1
Offspring

(Round up)

Type 1: Bugs 30 secs 10

Type 2: Nectar 30 secs 10 mL

Type 3: Large 30 secs 10

seeds

1. Which resource produced the most offspring?

2. Which produced the least or none?

3. Did you have more than one resource that was successful in
producing offspring?

4. Predict what will happen to this population over time? (Discuss all
resources in the context of ​Natural Selection​ and ​adaptations​ being
selected​ and ​reproduced​. Would the ​morphology​ of any birds
change over time?)
Round #1 - Sipping Beak (Straws)
Food Source Collection Number or Number or Number of
Time Amount of Amount of food Offspring
Collected items collected Produced
Food to
Produce 1
Offspring

(Round up)

Type 1: Bugs 30 secs 10

Type 2: Nectar 30 secs 10 mL

Type 3: Large 30 secs 20

seeds

1. Which resource produced the most offspring?

2. Which produced the least or none?

3. Did you have more than one resource that was successful in
producing offspring?

4. Predict what will happen to this population over time? (Discuss all
resources in the context of ​Natural Selection​ and ​adaptations​ being
selected​ and ​reproduced​. Would the ​morphology​ of any birds
change over time?)
Round #1 - Cracking Beak
(Large Binder Clips)
Food Source Collection Number or Number or Number of
Time Amount of Amount of food Offspring
Collected items collected Produced
Food to
Produce 1
Offspring

(Round up)

Type 1: Bugs 30 secs 10

Type 2: Nectar 30 secs 10 mL

Type 3: Large 30 secs 20

seeds

1. Which resource produced the most offspring?

2. Which produced the least or none?

3. Did you have more than one resource that was successful in
producing offspring?

4. Predict what will happen to this population over time? (Discuss all
resources in the context of ​Natural Selection​ and ​adaptations​ being
selected​ and ​reproduced​. Would the ​morphology​ of any birds
change over time?)
Round #2 - Probing Beak (Tweezers)
You must have offspring to try a resource. If you didn’t have any offspring for a resource in
Round 1, then that resource is removed and not trialed.

Food Source Collection Number or Number or Number Total

Time Amount of Amount of of number of
Collected food items Offspring Offspring
Add 10 Food to collected Produced Produced
seconds Produce 1
for each Offspring (Round 1 +
offspring Round 2)
produced (Round up)
in Round 1

Type 1: Bugs 30 secs + 10

Type 2: Nectar 30 secs + 10 mL

Type 3: Large 30 secs + 20

seeds

1. Did you have any resource that was not trialed?

2. What happened to the populations that did get trialed?

3. Predict what will happen to these populations over time?

Round #2 - Sipping Beak (Straws)
You must have offspring to try a resource. If you didn’t have any offspring for a resource in
Round 1, then that resource is removed and not trialed.

Food Source Collection Number or Number or Number Total

Time Amount of Amount of of number of
Collected food items Offspring Offspring
Add 10 Food to collected Produced Produced
seconds Produce 1
for each Offspring (Round 1 +
offspring Round 2)
produced (Round up)
in Round 1

Type 1: Bugs 30 secs + 10

Type 2: Nectar 30 secs + 10 mL

Type 3: Large 30 secs + 20

seeds

1. Did you have any resource that was not trialed?

2. What happened to the populations that did get trialed?

3. Predict what will happen to these populations over time?

Round #2 - Cracking Beak
(Large Binder Clips)
You must have offspring to try a resource. If you didn’t have any offspring for a resource in
Round 1, then that resource is removed and not trialed.

Food Source Collection Number or Number or Number Total

Time Amount of Amount of of number of
Collected food items Offspring Offspring
Add 10 Food to collected Produced Produced
seconds Produce 1
for each Offspring (Round 1 +
offspring Round 2)
produced (Round up)
in Round 1

Type 1: Bugs 30 secs + 10

Type 2: Nectar 30 secs + 10 mL

Type 3: Large 30 secs + 20

seeds

1. Did you have any resource that was not trialed?

2. What happened to the populations that did get trialed?

3. Predict what will happen to these populations over time?

Final Analysis

1. What do your findings suggest about ​natural selection?​ (Use your

data and given populations in your discussion) What type of
selection​ was acting on your beak populations in ​Round 2​? Discuss
each beak type.

Sipping Beak -

Probing Beak -

Cracking Beak -

​ (Use your
2. What did your findings suggest about ​adaptive radiation?
data and given populations in your discussion)