Ecosystems Part 2

Food webs – consists of many overlapping food chains in an ecosystem Organisms may play more than one role in an ecosystem.

Tertiary (third-level) consumers – eat the secondary and primary consumers and producers Secondary (second-level) consumers – eat the primary consumers

Primary (first-level) consumers – feed directly on the producers

Producers – form the base of the food web; the first organism in a food web is always a producer Decomposer – breaks down the waste and remains of other organisms

Fill in the circles with the following organisms according to their role in the ecosystem: frog, plants, grasshopper, red fox, mushrooms, snail, heron (bird)

Fill in the circles with the following organisms according to their role in the ecosystem: frog, plants, grasshopper, red fox, mushrooms, snail, heron (bird) Red Fox Heron Frog Grasshopper Snail Plants Mushrooms

Energy pyramid – shows the amount of energy that moves from one feeding level to another in a food web.

The most energy is available at the producer level of the pyramid The most energy is available at the producer level of the pyramid. As energy moves up the pyramid, each level has less energy available than the level below it.

Draw an arrow showing the direction of energy flow in the pyramid Draw an arrow showing the direction of energy flow in the pyramid. Label the level with the most amount energy and the label with the least amount of energy.

Draw an arrow showing the direction of energy flow in the pyramid Draw an arrow showing the direction of energy flow in the pyramid. Label the level with the most amount energy and the label with the least amount of energy. Least Energy Most Energy

The major types of interactions among organisms are competition and predation. Competition – the struggle between organisms to survive as they attempt to use the same limited resources

Predation – an interaction in which one organism kills another for food or nutrients Predator – organism doing the killing Prey – organism that is killed

What could happen if these warbler species fed in the same location on the tree? For what resources do the tree and grass compete?

Predators have adaptations that help them catch their prey Predators have adaptations that help them catch their prey. For example: a cheetah can run very fast; owls and bats can hunt at night

Prey have adaptations to help them avoid being killed by effective predators. For example: skunk have smelly spray; porcupine have sharp quills.

Label the predator and prey in the photo.

Label the predator and prey in the photo.