Transcript What is a food chain?

Objective: Food Chains
Essential Question: What is a food
chain?
Warm-Up:
Answer the following questions in
complete sentences:
• How are plants and animals
different?
Words to Know:
producer
consumer
predator
prey
food chain
All energy comes from the sun
Plants use the sun’s energy to
make food in which process?
Photosynthesis!
We call plants producers
because they produce energy
from the sun directly.
Nearly
all food
chains start
with a plant.
COPY THIS
DEFINITION!
(notebook
page 78)
Green
plantsPlants
are called
Producers:
makeproducers
their own because
food.
they produce their own food.
Animals (and people!) are consumers.
Some consume plants to get the energy
they need to live.
Others consume other animals. (Which are
you?)
Producer or Consumer?
CONSUMER
Producer or Consumer?
PRODUCER
Producer or Consumer?
CONSUMER
Animals that eat other animals are called predators.
Some animals are BOTH predators and prey.
This means they eat some animals but are eaten by
others.
Animals that are eaten by other animals are called
prey.
Some prey animals only eat plants.
Some predators (that eat other animals) can also be
prey to different animals.
Predator
Predator
Prey
Prey
Predator
Prey
FOOD CHAINS
Food CHAINS show what eats what in
order to gain the energy it needs to live.
Food CHAINS use arrows to show what
eats what.
Eaten
by:
Eaten
by:
Producer
Consumer
Consumer
Where are the consumers and producers?
A food chain shows how
energy is transferred
between organisms
Where does the energy FIRST come from?
How to Build A Food Chain…
ALWAYS start with a
PRODUCER!
WHY?
Plants absorb sunlight,
which gives them energy to
produce food. (That’s why
we call these producers).
Add a CONSUMER that
eats plants.
Add another CONSUMER
that preys on other
consumers.
How are we part of a food chain?
How are Humans part of this food
chain?
Why do food chains have no more
than four or five links?
There cannot be too many links in a single food
chain because the animals at the end of the
chain would not get enough food (and hence
energy) to stay alive.
Most animals are part of more than one food
chain
Sort these animals into a
food chain..
Rabbit
Grass
Fox
Sort these animals into a
food chain..
Grass
Your Favorite Food (Chain)
Think of your FAVORITE meal
(eg: hamburger and french fries, pizza, fried
chicken and mashed potatoes)
Write down your meal and all of its PARTS
For EACH part of the meal… create a FOOD
CHAIN
(eg: If you chose a hamburger, where did the
meat come from? The bun? The fries?)
Objective: Food Webs
Essential Question: What is the
difference between a food chain
and a food web?
Title: What a tasty web we weave
Objective: describe and create a food
web
Words to Know:
Herbivore
Carnivore
Omnivore
Food web
Question: What is the best way to
show the flow of energy through
organisms?
WARM UP
Draw four food chains:
remember what always comes first in a
food chain AND then put each
organism in the correct order
1. First food chain: deer, tree
2. Second food chain: snake, grass,
hawk, mouse
3. Third food chain: hawk, grass, mouse
4. Fourth food chain: cricket, hawk,
grass, frog
WARM UP
1. tree
->
producer
deer
consumer
2. Grass -> mouse -> snake -> hawk
producer
consumer consumer consumer
prey
both
predator
3. Grass -> mouse -> hawk
producer
consumer consumer
prey
predator
4. Grass -> cricket -> frog -> hawk
producer
consumer consumer consumer
prey
both
predator
In order to live, animals need energy.
Some animals get the energy they need to live
from eating plants and other vegetation.
Some animals get their energy from eating other
animals.
Some animals eat both plants and other animals.
Animals that eat plants are called Herbivores.
“Herbi” means “plants”.
Herbivores have specialized teeth and stomachs to
enable them to get the energy they need from plants.
Animals that eat plants are called Carnivores.
“Carni” means “meat”.
Carnivores have specialized teeth and stomachs to
enable them to get the energy they need from the
bodies of other animals.
Animals that eat plants and meat are called
Omnivores. OMNI means “ALL”
Humans are omnivores.
Omnivores have teeth and stomachs that enable them
to eat and digest both plants and meat.
Herbivore, Carnivore or
Omnivore?
Organism
Wolf (eats
foxes and
rabbits)
Moose
(eatsgrass)
Fox (eats
rabbits)
Bear (eats
berries and
fish)
Rabbit(eat
grass)
Herbivore, Carnivore, or Omnivore (EXPLAIN)
Carnivore: Eats ONLY meat
Herbivore: Eats ONLY plants
Carnivore: Eats ONLY meat
Omnivore: Eats BOTH plants and meat
Herbivore: Eats ONLY plants
Food Webs
FOOD WEBS SHOW HOW PLANTS &
ANIMALS ARE INTERCONNECTED BY
DIFFERENT PATHS.
Is a Food Chain a Good Model?
No! A Food Web is a more complete
picture of what really happens in nature.
-Do owls ONLY eat mice?
-Do mice ONLY eat grasshoppers?
-Do any other animals eat mice?
-Do any other animals eat
grasshoppers?
-AND do other animals in this
ecosystem eat grass?
Food Webs
 How
many food chains can
you make from this food
web?
Food Webs
 How
 Put
to create a food web…
the FOUR food chains you
drew for warm up together to
create a food web
Your Food Web…
TABLE: For each organism (trees, deer, etc.), decide
whether it is a producer or consumer, predator or prey,
and carnivore, omnivore, or herbivore.
Mark an X under each category you choose.
Producers
Organism
Trees
Grass
Deer
Snake
Hawk
Mouse
Cricket
Frog
Consumers
Predators
Prey
Herbivores
Omnivores
Carnivores
TABLE: For each organism (trees, deer, etc.), decide
whether it is a producer or consumer, predator or prey,
and carnivore, omnivore, or herbivore.
Mark an X under each category you choose.
Producers
Consumers
Predators
Prey
Herbivores
Omnivores
Carnivores
Organism
Trees
Grass
Deer
Snake
Hawk
Mouse
Cricket
Frog
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X X
X X
X
X
X
X
The Bottom of the Food Chain
bottom
trees
sun
grass
chain
Plants such as _______________
and _____________________ are at
the _____________________ of the
food _____________________.
Plants get their energy from the
_____________________.
The Middle of the Food Chain
deer herbivores rabbits carnivores
omnivores
Animals such as _____________________
and _____________________ get their energy
by eating plants. They are called
_____________________, which means 'plant
eaters.' There are many more herbivores on
our planet than _____________________,
which are animals that eat meat.
Humans are ________________
The Top of the Food Chain
predators
hunt
prey
both
top
lions
_____________________ such as wolves
and _____________________ are at the
_____________________ of the food
chain. Predators are animals that
_____________________ other animals.
The animals that they hunt are called
_____________________. Some animals
are __________ predator and prey.
The Food Web
connected
energy
web
more
Most animals belong to _____________________
than one food chain, which means many food
chains are _____________________ together.
Many food chains together form a food
_____________________. The food web shows
how the sun's _____________________ moves
from plants to animals to other animals.
`


1. What would most likely cause the rabbit population
to decrease (get smaller)? EXPLAIN your answer!
(A) An increase in the number of grass and trees
(B) An increase in the number of hawks
(C) An increase in the number of deer in the area
(D) An increase in the amount of available sunlight
2. Identify one of each (producer, consumer,
predator, prey, omni/carni/herbivore) in the food web.
PART III
Objective: Decomposers
Essential Question: What roles do
decomposers and scavengers
play in an ecosystem?
Words to Know:
scavenger
decomposers
Warm Up
What happens to the remains of animals?
(What happens to an animal’s body after it
dies? What happens to poop that animals
leave on the ground?)
Where does a Food Chain End?
What happens to the
Owl after it dies??
Scavengers and Decomposers
The Earth’s Clean-Up Crew!
When animals die, where do their bodies go?
They get eaten!
Scavengers and Decomposers eat dead
remains to help keep the Earth clean.
Scavengers: Eat
Dead Animals



Some animals eat dead animals.
They are called scavengers.
Scavengers help break organic
material into smaller pieces.
SCAVENGERS
Are we done with our food chain, yet?
Are we done with our food chain, yet?

Scavengers eat dead stuff, but they
CANNOT eat everything.



They leave behind a lot of unused energy and
nutrients.
What happens to the scavengers’ leftovers?
Decomposers eat the scraps
and break down the
remaining organic matter.
Decomposers: Complete the Circle of
Energy
The Last Step of the Food Chain
Bacteria
Decomposers
Bacteria
Fungus
The Earth’s
Clean-Up Crew!
Decomposers
Decomposers are Everywhere!
And there are LOTS of them!
A pinch of soil may contain almost half a
million fungi and billions of bacteria
Decomposer Animation…
What do Decomposers Do???





After scavengers break dead remains into
smaller parts,
these smaller pieces are eaten by decomposers.
Decomposers eat animal and plant remains
Decomposers convert all remains into carbon
dioxide (which they exhale during respiration)
and nutrients. (DECOMPOSERS ARE PART
OF THE CARBON CYCLE)
This recycles nutrients to be used again by plants
and animals.
What I Need to Know…




Scavengers not the same…
Two types of decomposers (fungi and bacteria)
They complete the food chain and return the
nutrients back to the beginning
Important because a) breaks down poop/dead
stuff that we don’t want around and b) makes
sure that nutrients don’t get wasted
Why are Decomposers Important?
Opinion-Proof
Opinion
Decomposers are important and should not be banned
 Scavengers not the same…
 Two types of decomposers (fungi and bacteria)
 They complete the food chain and return the nutrients
back to the beginning
 Important because a) breaks down poop/dead stuff
that we don’t want around and b) makes sure that
nutrients don’t get wasted

Opinion
Decomposers
should not be
banned because
they are
Important.
Proof_______________
What are decomposers?
(Name the two types)
How do decomposers help
the Earth?
(Explain two ways)
Can scavengers do the job
of decomposers? Explain
Are we done with our food chain, yet?

Scavengers eat dead stuff, but they
CANNOT eat everything.



They leave behind a lot of unused energy and
nutrients.
What happens to the scavengers’ leftovers?
Decomposers eat the scraps
and break down the
remaining organic matter.
Decomposers: Complete the Circle of
Energy
The Last Step of the Food Chain
Bacteria
SCAVENGER Or
DECOMPOSER?
SNAIL
SCAVENGER Or
DECOMPOSER?
VULTURE
SCAVENGER Or
DECOMPOSER?
MUSHROOM
SCAVENGER Or
DECOMPOSER?
WORM
SCAVENGER Or
DECOMPOSER?
COCKROACHES
SCAVENGER Or
DECOMPOSER?
BACTERIA
SCAVENGER
Or
DECOMPOSER
?
MOLD
Decomposers
Write and answer:
1. What is the difference between a worm
and a mushroom?
2. What are the similarities between snails
and mold?
3. What trophic level of the food chain are
decomposers?
4. How do decomposers help the food
chain?