Habitat fragmentation

High school (ages 12+)
Environment & Earth

Name:

Date:

Step 1 · Read the article

Open the article and read it at the level above. Then answer the questions below in your own words.

https://smallwhale.org/articles/habitat-fragmentation

Write what each word means, using the article.

Do not copy the article. Write two things you learned, the way you would explain them to a friend.

Answers below are taken from the article’s stored facts, so they match what the student read.

1. What is habitat fragmentation?Habitat fragmentation is when a big natural area is split into smaller, isolated pieces, like a playground cut into many tiny parts.
2. Why does habitat fragmentation happen?It happens mainly because people build farms, cities, roads, dams, and take resources from the land, which cuts the habitat into separate patches.

Habitat Fragmentation: The process by which large, continuous habitats are broken into smaller, isolated patches.
Gene Flow: The transfer of genetic material from one population to another, crucial for genetic diversity.
Edge Effects: Changes in ecological conditions that occur at the boundary of a habitat fragment.
Landscape Matrix: The non-habitat areas surrounding habitat fragments, influencing movement and survival.