1. Interactions Within the Environment
Goal: Describe how living things interact with each other and their environment.
Answer in your notebook: Give some examples of living things interacting with each other or their environment from this picture.
Ex: The elk is sitting on the grass

2. Independently read the passage “Interactions Within The Environment
Independently read the passage “Interactions Within The Environment.” When you finish reading, turn the paper over and complete the worksheet. You may work with a partner if you like.

3. What’s in an Ecosystem? It’s a Frog’s World…
Goal: to determine how organisms are organized by their interactions
Answer in your notebook:
What is the smallest unit of living things?
cells
What does the prefix “bio” mean?
life; living
List two living factors and two non-living factors of the ecosystem shown.
aaa

4. Ecology: the study of how living things interact with each other and their environment. Every living thing is made of cells!
An ecosystem is made up of all of the living (BIOTIC) and non-living (ABIOTIC) factors.
In the picture, place a CIRCLE AROUND things that are LIVING and an “X” over things that are NON-LIVING.

5. Atoms
Molecules
Organelles
Cells
Tissues
Organs
Organ Systems
Organisms
Populations
Communities
Ecosystems
Biosphere
The Universe
All of science builds upon levels: every living organism is made up of CELLS - tiny living units that can live alone (unicellular) or combine to make more complex things like tissues, organs, organ systems and organisms (multicellular); hence, the Levels of Organization.
ORGANISMS are organized into levels by how they interact with one another, which will take us into the Levels of Organization for Ecology. We have several types of organisms, and their type tells us how the organisms interact.

6. Now, let’s create our own levels of organization for the frog
Now, let’s create our own levels of organization for the frog. Each level must build upon the previous level. For example, if we draw a cardiac muscle cell, then we should draw cardiac muscle tissue, a heart, & the cardiovascular system.
Cellular level (muscle cell)
Organism level (consisting of many organ systems)
Organ system level (cardiovascular system)
Tissue level (muscle tissue)
Organ level (heart)

7. Organism: a single living thing that obtains food, water, and shelter to live, grow, and reproduce in its habitat (environment). An organism’s niche is its total way of life.
Ex: frog

8. Ex: All of the frogs living in a pond behind your neighborhood
Population: A group of interbreeding organisms (species) living in the same area
Ex: All of the frogs living in a pond behind your neighborhood

9. Community: all the populations in an ecosystem
Ex: All the frogs, insects, reptiles, birds, plants, mushrooms, bacteria, protists, mammals & fish living in the pond behind your neighborhood

10. Ecosystem/Biome : Includes all the living (biotic) & nonliving (abiotic) features of an environment. There are several major types of ecosystems such as a rainforest, desert, tundra, deciduous forest, taiga, marine, etc.
Ex: All the frogs, insects, birds, reptiles, plants, mushrooms, bacteria, mammals & fish along with water, soil, air, clouds, sunlight, and man-made materials in the pond behind your neighborhood

11. Biosphere: every place on Earth that can support life
Atmosphere
Lithosphere
Hydrosphere
Atmosphere = air
Hydrosphere = water
Lithosphere = land

12. Now, use your frog to create each level
Now, use your frog to create each level. Fill out the circles with pictures of other frogs that will join your frog in its population, include the frog and other animals/plants/fungi/protists/bacteria in the community, and then all of the living & non-living things in the ecosystem.

13. You are What You Eat!
Goal: To learn the various types of organisms within an ecosystem
Answer in your notebook:
1.  DEFINE and give an EXAMPLE for:
a. Herbivore
b. Carnivore
c. Omnivore
d. Decomposer
2.  Compare an autotroph with a heterotroph.
- Autotrophs (producers) make their own food
- Heterotrophs (consumers) can’t make their own food so they must eat it
plant eater (Ex: Deer)
meat eater (Ex: Wolf)
eats both plants and animals (Ex. Bear)
breaks down dead material (Ex. Flies)

14. Enters Stomata (tiny holes) in leaves
There are two types of organisms – those that can make their own food, and those that get their food from other sources.
1. Producers/Autotrophs: get their energy from the SUN through the process of photosynthesis.
Sunlight
Carbon Dioxide
Enters Stomata (tiny holes) in leaves
Glucose Sugar
Stored
Water
Enters through Roots
Oxygen
Exits Stomata

15. Consumers/Heterotrophs: get their food from other sources
Consumers/Heterotrophs: get their food from other sources. There are 3 types:
Herbivores: eat only plants

16. Carnivores: eat only animals

17. Omnivores: eats BOTH plants & animals

18. Scavenger: eats the leftovers

19. Decomposer: breaks down decaying material

20. Do you know how these organisms get THEIR energy?
Carnivore, Herbivore or Omnivore??
Producer, Consumer or Decomposer??

21. You are what you eat!
Identify each organism in the diagram below and label each as a producer, decomposer, herbivore, carnivore or omnivore.
strawberry – producer; grasshopper – herbivore;
mouse – omnivore; snake – carnivore; hawk – carnivore;
mushrooms - decomposer
What do you think the direction of the arrow between each organism means?
energy moves in the direction of the arrow – from the organism being eaten, to the one that is eating it
nutrients

22. Begins with light energy from the SUN.
Food Chain: series of events in which one organism eats another and obtains energy. Each level is a “trophic” level.
Begins with light energy from the SUN.

23. 6CO2 + 6H2O + sunlight & chlorophyll C6H12O6 + 6O2
Producers: make food (glucose) using the sun’s energy through photosynthesis:
6CO2 + 6H2O + sunlight & chlorophyll C6H12O6 + 6O2
Sunlight
Carbon Dioxide
Enters Stomata (tiny holes) in leaves
Glucose Sugar
Stored
Water
Enters through Roots
Oxygen
Exits Stomata

24. Primary (1st) Consumer: eats producers/plants and can be an
Herbivore OR Omnivore

25. Secondary (2nd) Consumer: a carnivore or omnivore eats the primary consumer

26. Tertiary (3rd) Consumer: eats primary or secondary consumers.
Called the “top of the food chain” OR

27. Who feeds on EVERYTHING?
Scavenger: Carnivore that feeds on dead organisms.
Decomposers: break down decaying material and release nutrients into soil
nutrients

28. 6O2 + C6H12O6 --> 6H2O + 6CO2 + energy
Food Chain!
nutrients
Organisms use the energy released in the food chain to power all of their daily activities through the process of cellular respiration
6O2 + C6H12O6 -->  6H2O + 6CO2 + energy

29. More Food Chains!

30. Food Web: many overlapping food chains in an ecosystem
Food Web: many overlapping food chains in an ecosystem. Shows how ALL organisms interact within the ecosystem
Food Web
Food Chain

31. Food Chain & Web Games! Simple starter food chain
Ecosystem food chains
Ducksters Food Web
Woodland Food Web
Fun with Food Webs
HA! HA!

32. Why Can’t We All Just Get Along?
Goal:  To explain the types of relationships that exist between organisms
Answer in your notebook:  Define the following terms in your own words:
Competition:
To fight for a resource
Predator:
The organism that hunts
Prey:
The organism that gets eaten

33. Predation: interaction where one organism (predator) kills another organism for food (prey)

34. Competition: struggle between organisms to survive as they attempt to use the same limited resource

35. Limiting Factors of Ecosystems
Limiting factor: an environmental condition or resource that limits the size of a population of organisms.
What are examples
of limiting factors?
-Food
-Water
-Weather
-Accidents
-Natural Catastrophe
-Disease
-Predators
-Space/Habitat
-Mate
-Competition
The largest population an area can support is its carrying capacity which is driven by limiting factors.

36. Interactions of Living Things
Symbiosis: close relationship created between two species due to coevolution (species evolve together in their environment).
The relationship must benefit at least one of the species. = ? OR

37. There are three types of symbiotic relationships:
Mutualism (+,+): relationship where both species benefit
Clownfish & Sea Anemone
Buffalo & Tickbird
Bumblebee & Flowers

38. Commensalism (+,0): relationship where one species benefits and the other species is neither helped nor harmed
Spanish Moss & Trees
Shark & Remora
Elephant & Egret

39. Parasitism (+,-): relationship where one species benefits (parasite) while the other is harmed (host)
Cuckoo Bird & Bird Nests
Ticks & Mammals
Mosquitoes & Mammals

40. Wanted: Symbiotic Relationship Apply Within!

41. Headline describing job
What You Do:
Create a classified advertisement/want ad for a job opening in which an organism in a symbiotic relationship is looking for the other organism. The ad should be based on a mutualistic, parasitic, or commensalistic relationship.
Headline describing job
Create a catchy headline to grab attention. Write a line describing the relationship you are seeking (mutualistic, parasitic, commensalistic), a line about who you are and the qualities you possess, a line about the type of organism you need for the job (Qualifications), a line about why you need this service, and a line describing what you will give the organism in return for his or her services.
Picture accompanying advertisement:
A picture showing you, the organism in search of the other organism. A picture showing the organism of which you are searching. A picture showing the two of you together in your symbiotic relationship. Must be neat and colorful!
Materials to use
To create this ad, use Google Drawing, similar to our Food Web project! Make it colorful and creative!