1.10

It’s Not Fair!

I. Purpose: To visualize and understand the reasons for the evolution of a salamander population over long periods of time.

II. Problem: How do mutations effect the survival of an organism?

III. Hypothesis:

IV. Procedure:

1. All players begin as the same organism (a salamander) with the following features:

A. Salamanders are small amphibians that live in water or in moist terrestrial habitats

B. Color - red; Skin - moist, soft; Size - 6 inches long; Body temperature - cold blooded; Diet – invertebrates

C. Reproduction -

Attracts mate by smell

Mates on land

Lays eggs in shallow pools of water

Does not care for young in any way

D. Behavior -

Does not hibernate

Rests at night in holes in the ground, under logs, or wherever it can find some shelter

Mute

E. Physiology -

Low endurance - must rest after moving continuously for several minutes

Weak swimmer - is carried away by a current flowing faster than haIf a mile per hour

Moves slowly on land and cannot jump

Body and eggs absorb salts from salt water so it cannot survive in a saltwater environment

F. Habitat - Forested regions bordered by a large river. There are many other organisms. Winters are not severe; snow rarely accumulates.

2.The game will be organized into rounds that represent periods of roughly 1 million years. These rounds will be organized as follows:

A. At the beginning of each round each player picks up to 2 mutations from a list displayed at the front. Many mutations will appear in more than one round with new mutations added in each round.

B. Each mutation is permanent to the player’s species and will be effective in all the following rounds.

C.Any new mutation replaces any contradicting traits which are indicated by brackets [] after the mutation.

D. Some mutations require previous mutations. These prerequisites are listed in parentheses () after the mutation.

E. After mutations are chosen, an environmental change is randomly picked from the list. These environmental changes only have an effect in the round in which they are chosen and should not be used twice; no points will be gained or lost for past environmental change.

3.Scoring

A.Each student (or team) begins with 5 points. A score of zero (0) represents extinction and the player is out of the game. Players attempt to survive and increase their scores.

1.If an environmental change is beneficial, + I

2.If an environmental change is detrimental, -1

V. Data

Points (Start @ 5)
Environmental Change
Mutation Description
Mutation(s)
Round # / 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 / 6 / 7 / 8 / 9 / 10

What does the salamander look like now?

Create a sketch of your organism after all ten rounds. Label all the parts of your organism and describe their function.

VI. Data Analysis:

1. Did your organism survive or go extinct?

2. Describe your organism after all the rounds. Include in your description all components that are included in the original description. If your organism went extinct, describe it when it went extinct.

3. a. Can your organism survive in its current habitat? If not, explain where it would have to live.

b. Could it survive in other habitats now? Explain

4. Were any of your mutations actually detrimental to the organism when an environmental change occurred? Explain.

5. Which environmental changes were most detrimental to your organism?

VII. Conclusion: Follow the lab report guidelines and use the CEI format.