Search

Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History

Sexual Selection

Introduction

National Middle School Science Standards

Life Science

Key Terms

competition, adaptation, mate selection, sexual dimorphism

Key Concepts

  • Competition for mates
  • Features adapted to attract mates
  • Male and female dimorphism
  • Range of mating systems
  • Fossil evidence for sexual selection

Resource Types

Middle School Level

High School Level

Advanced Reading Level

Invertebrate Zoology Subject Guide Smithsonian Libraries

Vertebrate Zoology Subject Guide Smithsonian Libraries

Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS)

The  Sexual Selection teaching resources support students in meeting the following middle school NGSS Performance Expectations:

Life Science

MS-LS2 Ecosystems: Interactions, Energy, and Dynamics

  • MS-LS2-1 Analyze and interpret data to provide evidence for the effects of resource availability on organisms and populations of organisms in an ecosystem.

  • MS-LS2-2 Construct an explanation that predicts patterns of interactions among organisms across multiple ecosystems.

  • MS-LS2-4 Construct an argument supported by empirical evidence that changes to physical or biological components of an ecosystem affect populations.

MS-LS4 Biological Evolution: Unity and Diversity

  • MS-LS4-4 Construct an explanation based on evidence that describes how genetic variations of traits in a population increase some individuals' probability of surviving and reproducing in a specific environment.

Resource Type
Subject Guides
Grade Level
6-8
Learning Standards
Next Generation Science Standards
Topics
Life Science