Food Chains and Food Webs

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What is a food chain?

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A food chain is a linear sequence that shows how energy and nutrients flow from one organism to another in an ecosystem, starting from producers and moving up to consumers.

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NGSS.MS-LS2-3

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What is a food web?

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A food web is a complex network of interconnected food chains that illustrates how different organisms in an ecosystem are related through feeding relationships.

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NGSS.MS-LS2-3

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What role do producers play in a food chain?

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Producers, such as plants and algae, create their own food through photosynthesis and serve as the primary energy source for all other organisms in the food chain.

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What is a consumer?

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A consumer is an organism that cannot produce its own food and must eat other organisms (plants or animals) to obtain energy.

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What are the different types of consumers?

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Consumers can be classified into primary consumers (herbivores), secondary consumers (carnivores that eat herbivores), and tertiary consumers (carnivores that eat other carnivores).

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NGSS.MS-LS2-3

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What happens to a food web if a key species is removed?

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Removing a key species can disrupt the balance of the food web, leading to population declines or increases in other species and potentially causing a collapse of the ecosystem.

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NGSS.MS-LS2-3

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What is the significance of the shrew in the food web described?

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The shrew serves as a food source for snakes and is dependent on other organisms like the snowshoe hare for its survival.

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How do energy and nutrients flow in a food chain?

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Energy and nutrients flow from producers to primary consumers, then to secondary consumers, and so on, with energy decreasing at each trophic level due to metabolic processes.

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NGSS.MS-LS2-3

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What is the role of decomposers in a food web?

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Decomposers break down dead organic matter, returning nutrients to the soil and making them available for producers, thus completing the nutrient cycle.

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NGSS.MS-LS2-3

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What is the difference between a food chain and a food web?

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A food chain is a simple, linear representation of energy flow, while a food web is a more complex and interconnected representation of multiple food chains in an ecosystem.

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NGSS.MS-LS2-3