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United States Department of Agriculture

Agricultural Research Service

Melaueca Mystery Quiz

animated walking alligator

Melaleuca Mystery Quiz

Check out Yucky Maids All in a Row--an insect story in Sci4Kids. Then battle your way through the following questions. Here we go!

 Melaleuca is... (Circle one)

 animated number 1 moving up and down
(A) a yucky brand of ketchup
(B) a new veggie used in school lunches
(C) a tree that is taking over the Everglades
(D) a new variation of the macarena
(E) paper made from tree bark

Melaleuca trees originally came from _______________.

The Everglades is... (Circle one)

 animated number 3 moving up and down
(A) a large national park in Disney World
(B) ocean land that's receding
(C) the largest national park in the Rocky Mountains
(D) a huge marsh, rich in wildlife, located in southern Florida
(E) swampland in Mississippi

According to the story, the Everglades is the only place in the world where _____________ and ______________ live side by side.

Why do people want to get rid of the melaleuca trees in the Everglades?

What is the best way to control the trees? (Circle one)

 animated number 6 moving up and down
(A) chop them down
(B) use chemical pesticides
(C) make bugs eat their leaves
(D) use them to make wood chips for the trails
(E) feed them to the alligators

Explain how bugs eating the trees' leaves will help solve the problem.

In 1997, scientists released what biocontrol organism in the Florida Everglades?

Biocontrol means using something that's _________--like yucky bugs--to fight harmful pests. Biocontrol is being used more and more as people learn how nature can take the place of chemical pesticides to help protect our food supply and our environment.


In using biocontrol to manage melaleuca, it's important to... (Circle one)
(A) control melaleuca but leave the other plants alone
(B) also control the alligator population
(C) increase use of pesticides
(D) replace the melaleuca with smaller trees
(E) find a good way to use the wood from melaleuca trees


  • Pretend you're Indiana Jones battling your way through the Everglades. Using facts in the story and some of the answers in the quiz, create a Melaleuca mystery game to tame the wild woods. A clear Everglades and a sound ecosystem are the prized treasure!
  • Rewrite the melaleuca story from the bug's point of view.

 Click Here: Melaueca Mystery Quiz.pdf
Last Modified: 2/14/2011
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