PBS Living Edens Ecosystems Research Project
This is a long-term research project and presentation assignment that can be used during or after the ecosystems unit. Students will be assigned specific ecosystems from different places all over the Earth. They will find and document examples of animal and plant adaptations, speciation, abiotic factors, and interspecies relationships. This assignment uses the PBS Living Edens documentary series produced in 1996-1998. The availability of the documentary is limited but it does appear on the National Geographic channel from time to time. The videos may also be available online if you know where to look.
Essential concepts: Biomes, land ecosystems, aquatic ecosystems, symbiotis, adaptations, speciation, climate, latitude, natural selection, convergent evolution, divergent evolution, co-evolution, biotic factors, abiotic factors.
