Which environmental impact is attributed to European presence in the New World?

Which environmental impact is attributed to European presence in the New World?

• A. Beavers were overhunted, and fish habitats were destroyed.
• B. Native populations expanded due to trade.
• C. Disease did not affect indigenous peoples.
• D. Plants changed little.

Answer: (A)

The main idea is how European activity altered ecosystems through resource extraction, especially the fur trade. Beavers were hunted heavily for their pelts, and their numbers dropped dramatically. Beavers shape habitats by building dams that create wetlands and influence water flow; when they diminish, those dammed wetlands disappear or change, which in turn disrupts fish habitats. So the combination of overhunting and the resulting changes in waterways and fish environments is the environmental impact highlighted here. By contrast, native populations did not expand due to trade, disease did affect indigenous peoples, and plant communities changed more than “little,” so those options don’t fit the described ecological shift.

The main idea is how European activity altered ecosystems through resource extraction, especially the fur trade. Beavers were hunted heavily for their pelts, and their numbers dropped dramatically. Beavers shape habitats by building dams that create wetlands and influence water flow; when they diminish, those dammed wetlands disappear or change, which in turn disrupts fish habitats. So the combination of overhunting and the resulting changes in waterways and fish environments is the environmental impact highlighted here. By contrast, native populations did not expand due to trade, disease did affect indigenous peoples, and plant communities changed more than “little,” so those options don’t fit the described ecological shift.