Population Distribution
How does population distribution affect the environment?
Why?
Alaska contains over 127 million acres of untouched forest land. It is the largest state in the United States, yet with a
population of nearly 700,000 people it has the same total population as Austin, Texas. New Jersey is one of the
smallest states and home to a population of nearly 9 million, but almost 1.8 million of its 4.4 million total land acres
are untouched natural woodland. What are the reasons for the ways popula-tions organize themselves, and what
effect does this organization have on the environment?
Model 1 – Population Density and Distribution
clustered
random 2 km
Habitat 1 Habitat 4
Habitat 3 2 km
uniform
random
iii
Habitat 2
Habitat 5
= individual organism
1. Refer to Model 1.
a. What do the dots in the diagrams represent?
individual organisms
b. What do the boxes in the diagrams represent?
Habitats
2. Calculate the area of a single habitat.
2x2 = 4km
3. Consider the arrangements of the dots in Model 1.
, a. Describe the arrangements of the dots in habitat 3.
equally spread out
How does population distribution affect the environment?
Why?
Alaska contains over 127 million acres of untouched forest land. It is the largest state in the United States, yet with a
population of nearly 700,000 people it has the same total population as Austin, Texas. New Jersey is one of the
smallest states and home to a population of nearly 9 million, but almost 1.8 million of its 4.4 million total land acres
are untouched natural woodland. What are the reasons for the ways popula-tions organize themselves, and what
effect does this organization have on the environment?
Model 1 – Population Density and Distribution
clustered
random 2 km
Habitat 1 Habitat 4
Habitat 3 2 km
uniform
random
iii
Habitat 2
Habitat 5
= individual organism
1. Refer to Model 1.
a. What do the dots in the diagrams represent?
individual organisms
b. What do the boxes in the diagrams represent?
Habitats
2. Calculate the area of a single habitat.
2x2 = 4km
3. Consider the arrangements of the dots in Model 1.
, a. Describe the arrangements of the dots in habitat 3.
equally spread out
