Environmental engineers at the University of California (Riverside) are studying the patterns of extinction in the New Zealand bird population. (Evolutionary Ecology Research, July 2003.) The following characteristics were determined for each bird species that inhabited New Zealand at the time of the Maori colonization (i.e., prior to European Contact). Identify each variable as quantitative or qualitative.
a. Flight capability (volant or flightless)
b. Habitat type (aquatic, ground terrestrial, or aerial terrestrial)
c. Nesting site (ground, cavity within ground, tree, cavity above ground)
d. Nest density (high or low)
e. Diet (fish, vertebrates, vegetables, or invertebrates)
f. Body mass (grams)
g. Egg length (millimeters)
h. Extinct status (extinct, absent from island, present)
