Food Chains and Webs --- "What's for dinner?"

Transcription

1 Food Chains and Webs --- "What's for dinner?" Every organism needs to obtain energy in order to live. For example, plants get energy from the sun, some animals eat plants, and some animals eat other animals. A food chain is the sequence of who eats whom in a biological community (an ecosystem) to obtain nutrition. A food chain starts with the energy source, usually the sun. The next link in the chain is an organism that makes its own food from the primary energy source -- an example is photosynthetic plants that make their own food from sunlight (using a process called photosynthesis) they are called producers. herbivore - these are called primary consumers -- an example is a snake that eats rabbits. In turn, these animals are eaten by larger predators -- an example is an owl that eats snakes. The secondary consumers are eaten by tertiary consumers -- an example is a hawk that eats owls. Each food chain ends with a top predator and animal with no natural enemies (like an alligator, hawk, or polar bear). Food Chain Questions 1. What travels through a food chain or web? What is the ultimate energy for all life on Earth? Food chains start with what? The 1 st organism in a food chain must always be what type of organism?

2 5. Name the food making processes What are the prey and the predator? Define herbivore Herbivores are also called. 9. What are animals called that feed on herbivores? 10. Secondary consumers are eaten by larger. 11. Consumers eat secondary consumers. 12. Make a food chain with a producer and 3 consumers

3 What Are Populations, Habitats, and Niches? Lesson 1 Which population is found in a rainforest ecosystem? antelopes monkeys sponges zebras In a rainforest, why do fewer plants grow closer to the ground? Earthworms eat the plants living on the ground. Broad leaves keep rain from reaching ground soil. Vines allow little space for ground plants to grow. Little light gets through the canopy to the forest floor. Which statement best describes this picture? A population of elephants lives in the savanna. A community of elephants lives in the savanna. Elephants and grasses make up a savanna population. Trees and grasses are communities in a savanna ecosystem. Earthworms live in soil. They eat rotting leaves and the remains of dead insects. Wastes from earthworms add nutrients to the soil. Earthworms are food for some birds. Which statement best describes the niche of an earthworm? Earthworms live in soil. Soil contains nutrients for plants. Earthworms use remains of insects found in soil as food. Rotting plants and remains of insects can be found in soil. Which identifies the nonliving parts important in all ecosystems?

4 air, heat, rocks, water, and soil air, water, soil, sunlight, and temperature salt, temperature, sunlight, heat, and rocks water, soil, sunlight, rocks, and shade

5 What Are Food Chains? Lesson 2

6 Food chains have three types of consumers. Which statement describes an herbivore? eats only plants eats only animals makes its own food eats plants and animals In a swamp, rabbits eat marsh grass. Bobcats eat rabbits. How are the rabbits and bobcats interacting? Rabbits are prey and bobcats are predators. Rabbits are herbivores and bobcats are prey. Rabbits are consumers and bobcats are producers. Rabbits are carnivores and bobcats are herbivores. In a forest, deer eat plants. Snakes eat small animals and birds. Raccoons eat mice, insects, fruits, and plants. What is the raccoon? carnivore herbivore omnivore producer

7 In a desert food chain, wild pigs called peccaries eat cacti. Then coyotes eat peccaries. In a forest food chain, deer eat plants. Then wolves eat deer. How does energy move in both of these food chains? from producers to consumers from consumers to producers from scavengers to herbivores from consumers to consumers In a grassland food chain, grasshoppers eat grass. Then meerkats eat grasshoppers. What is the main role of the grasshopper in this food chain? make a new habitat be a source of energy clear grass for space to live lay eggs to make more grasshoppers

8 How Can We Model a Food Web? Lesson 3 In a food web, energy is transferred between organisms. When an organism dies, what happens to the energy stored in its body? Fungi and bacteria use it for food. Plants use it to make their own food. Animals use it to grow strong. The organism rots and its energy is lost. What is the main source of energy for the food web below? hawk rabbit plants toad In Michael s garden, caterpillars sometimes eat the vegetables. Then the beetles eat the caterpillars. If the beetle population decreased, what would most likely happen to the vegetables?

9 There would be no vegetables. There would be more vegetables. There would be fewer vegetables. There would be no difference in the vegetables. The picture below shows organisms that live in a marsh. How does energy move through this food web? heron, fish, sun, grass, water bugs water bugs, sun, grass, fish, heron fish, water bugs, grass, heron sun, grass, water bugs, fish, heron All living things need energy. What is the main source of energy for living things? air plants soil sunlight