What is an invasive species?

An invasive species is a living thing that is brought to a new place, where it spreads and causes harm. Zebra mussels, native near the Black Sea and Caspian Sea, were first found in the Great Lakes in 1988.

How can people slow the spread of zebra mussels?

Boaters are asked to clean, drain and dry their boats before moving them to another lake, because tiny young mussels can travel in the water left inside a boat.

6th Grade Populations and Invasive Species Worksheets

Ages 11-12 · Free previews · Print-ready PDFs

Written by Adi Ackerman, Head Teacher

A population is all the members of one species living in the same area, and its size depends on limits in the environment. These two 6th grade worksheets, each with an answer key, show what happens when those limits change. Limiting Factors and Carrying Capacity follows an imaginary island deer herd on a model graph, and Zebra Mussels, an Invasive Species traces how mussels that arrived in ballast water affect native fish and mussels. The sheets practice MS-LS2-1 and MS-LS2-4.

6th Grade Science Ecosystems Populations and invasive species Clear All

Limiting Factors and Carrying Capacity

Grade6th Grade

TopicEcosystems

Zebra Mussels, an Invasive Species

Grade6th Grade

TopicEcosystems

More ecosystems worksheets

Explore all of our 6th grade ecosystems worksheets, covering food webs and matter cycles, biomes and biodiversity, symbiosis and predators, populations and invasive species.

Food webs and matter cycles Biomes and biodiversity Symbiosis and predators

Frequently Asked Questions

On the island deer sheet, food, water and space limit the herd before any predators arrive. Predators can also be a limiting factor, and a drought that kills plants lowers the number of deer the island can support.

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