Evolution Simulation: Predator-Prey Lab
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1) Problem
How does color natural selection?
 Collect Information
The concept of biological evolution is a major unifying theme of
modern biology. In the late 1850’s both Charles Darwin and Alfred
Russell Wallace theorized natural selection to be the chief mechanism
of evolutionary change in populations of organisms. This laboratory
exercise is a highly simplified attempt to simulate evolution by means
of natural selection.
In this exercise, predators will act as agents of selection on a prey of
species whose members vary in color, which we will assume is an
inherited trait. Punched out paper chips of various colors represent
the prey. The prey will be spread out on a piece of colored fabric (the
habitat) and the predators (you) will prey upon the population and
remove 75 % (15 of the 20) of the prey. The survivors will reproduce,
passing along their color genes to their offspring until the population is
restored to its original size of 20.
You will work in groups of three. Your teacher will distribute the
colored chips on the fabric. The students will act as the predators.
Before beginning the simulation, read through the entire procedure
and write your hypothesis.

Hypothesis –What chip color is the best adapted to its
environment and will best survive predation? Write in
complete sentences.
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2) Experimental Procedure
 Materials:
o Colored Paper chips (prey)
o Multi-colored fabric (habitat)
o Graph paper
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Methods
o 1) Get 4 paper chips from each of the 5 bags to create
a population of 20 prey of 5 different colors
o 2) Place the 20 chips in an empty bag and mix them
well.
o 3) Spread the chips out on the fabric (habitat).
Describe the colors and patterns in the observations
section.
o 4) The “predators” should stand with their back toward
the habitat while the “distributor” empties the collection
of prey onto the fabric, trying achieve roughly uniform
distribution of chips and being sure to separate and that
are clumped together.
o 5) In order to ensure the survival of 25% of the chips,
the predator must remove 15 chips, thus leaving 5
chips to remain.
o 6) Once chips are spread on the fabric, the distributor
signals the predators to turn around and start the
process of predation. The predator should pick up only
one chip at a time, and then turn their back on the
fabric to place the chip in a plastic bag. This action will
force the predator to simulate the usual predatory
pattern of focusing attention on the prey as it is killed
or carried off. Chips may only be detected by vision
and not by touch
o 7) After 15 chips have been captured from the fabric,
remove the 5 remaining chips. Count the number of
survivors of each color and record this on your
data sheet. Multiply these data by 4 to convert
them back to the original population size, as
directed on the data sheet. Now get this number of
each color chip and use them as the starting population
for the next step.
o 8) Distribute these 20 chips, repeating steps 4 through
7, in order to complete two rounds of predation
o
Make sure to label your graph properly
o
You may use colored pencils or crayons to
indicate chip color
o
Support or reject your hypothesis based on
your observations to form and write a
conclusion in the section below
3) Observations /Data - Write in complete sentences.
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4) Conclusion - How did the experimental results compare to
your hypothesis? Write in complete sentences.
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