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Energy Flow Through an Ecosystem Food Chains, Food Webs, Energy Pyramids

Do you like to play games, run, jump, or dance? If you do, you will need ENERGY!

Today we can: Review that organisms can be classified as producers, consumers, scavengers, or decomposers Create a food chain or food web Create an energy pyramid to explain how energy is transferred through an ecosystem

Begins with the SUN Photosynthesis Remember: “It Starts With Producers” Song

The chemical reaction by which green plants use water and carbon dioxide and light from the sun to make glucose. ENERGY is stored in glucose; glucose is stored as starch.

Organisms that can make glucose during photosynthesis are called PRODUCERS.

Producers use most of the energy they make for themselves.

The energy that is not used by producers can be passed on to organisms that cannot make their own energy.

Organisms that cannot make their own energy are called Remember the song: “Energy Roles” CONSUMERS.

Consumers that eat producers to get energy: Are first order or primary consumers Are (plant-eaters) herbivores

Most of the energy the primary consumer gets from the producer is used by the consumer.

Some of the energy moves into the atmosphere as heat.

Some energy in the primary consumer is not lost to the atmosphere or used by the consumer itself. This energy is available for another consumer.

A consumer that eats another consumer for energy: Is called a secondary or second order consumer May be a carnivore or a omnivore May be a predator May be a scavenger

Most of the energy the secondary consumer gets from the primary consumer is used by the secondary consumer.

Some of the energy is lost as heat, but some energy is stored and can passed on to another consumer.

A consumer that eats a consumer that already ate a consumer: Is called a third order or tertiary consumer May be a carnivore or a omnivore May be a predator May be a scavenger

Consumers that eat producers & other consumers Are called Omnivores eat plants and animals omnivores

Consumers that hunt & kill other consumers are called They animals that are hunted & killed are called predators. prey.

Consumers that eat other consumers that have already died are called scavengers.

The transfer of energy from sun to producer to primary consumer to secondary consumer to tertiary consumer can be shown in a FOOD CHAIN.

Food Chain Song! Activity

Do you ONLY eat ONE kind of food? Neither do most organisms! This leads to a Food Web

Food Webs: Are interconnected food chains They show the feeding relationships in an ecosystem ACTIVITY

What would happen if a disease wiped out a population of consumers? Would it affect the food chain of other living things?

This interdependence of the populations within a food chain helps to maintain the balance of plant and animal populations within a community. For example, when there are too many zebras; there will be insufficient shrubs and grass for all of them to eat. Many zebras will starve and die. Fewer zebras means more time for the shrubs and grass to grow to maturity and multiply. Fewer zebras also mean less food is available for the lions to eat and some lions will starve to death. When there are fewer lions, the zebra population will increase.

Another way of showing the transfer of energy in an ecosystem is the ENERGY PYRAMID.

Energy pyramids show That the amount of available energy decreases down the food chain It takes a large number of producers to support a small number of primary consumers It takes a large number of primary consumers to support a small number of secondary consumers

Go to my Weekly Plans on my website Complete the interactive activities in order Pyramid Activity Food chains Food WebsFood Webs #1 Food WebsFood Webs #2

In small groups, you will create one of the following: Food Chain Food Web Energy Pyramid Remember the jobs we created last time. Everyone in the group contributes!! In the next class, you will share these as part of your presentation with your Biome Posters

Today we can: Review that organisms can be classified as producers, consumers, scavengers, or decomposers Create a food chain or food web Create an energy pyramid to explain how energy is transferred through an ecosystem

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