Question

a bird that preys on moths is introduced to the habitat with moths and trees like the ones shown below. what will most likely happen to the population of moths in this habitat?

Explanation:

This problem relates to Natural Science, specifically Biology (subfield: Ecology/Evolution). The key concept is natural selection (camouflage). The light - colored moth blends with the tree (light - colored bark), while the dark - colored moth is more visible. The introduced bird preys on moths it can see. So, the dark - colored moths will be preyed on more, and the light - colored moths will have a survival advantage. Over time, the population of light - colored moths will likely increase, and the dark - colored moth population will decrease (or the overall moth population will shift towards more light - colored moths as they are better camouflaged and survive to reproduce more).

Answer:

The population of light - colored moths will likely increase (and dark - colored moths will likely decrease) because the light - colored moths are better camouflaged from the predatory bird, leading to higher survival and reproduction rates.