Ecosystems: Roles and Relationships

Ecosystems: Roles and Relationships

Some text here about the topic of discussion

The student will...

​Know that organisms have specific roles in an ecosystem

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Understand how relationships form based on roles within the ecosystems

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Be able to analyze a food web and identify roles and relationships​

​Ecosystems are made up of living and nonliving things.

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Living things are called biotic factors. Nonliving things are called abiotic factors.

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Biotic and abiotic factors cannot switch categories. For example, an animal while alive is biotic. When it dies, it is still biotic because it was once alive. Abiotic factors were never alive and never will be. They simply cannot switch categories!​

​​Biotic vs Abiotic

Multiple Choice

Biotic factors include

• Plants

• Rocks

• Soil

• Clouds

Multiple Choice

A plant is biotic but once it dies it becomes abiotic.

• True

• False

Producers gain their energy by making food through the process of photosynthesis

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A producer usually won't have an arrow pointing to it, unless the arrow is coming from the sun ​

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​Producers

Multiple Choice

What are the producers in this food web?

• Algae only

• Phytoplankton only

• Algae and Phytoplankton

• Phytoplankton and Zooplankton

Multiple Choice

Where do the producers get their energy?

• Through photosynthesis after absorbing sunlight

• From the primary consumers

• Depends on the organisms that they eat

• Nowhere. Producers don't need energy.

Consumers get their energy by eating (consuming) other organisms

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Types:

1. Primary eat producers

2. Secondary eat primary

3. Tertiary eat secondary

4. Apex predators are the top consumers​

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​Consumers

Multiple Choice

Name a primary consumer.

• Owl

• Fox

• Rabbit

• Grass

Multiple Choice

Name an organism that is both a primary and a secondary consumer.

• Bird

• Grasshopper

• Owl

• Grain

Multiple Choice

How many organisms does the Owl eat?

• 1

• 2

• 3

• 4

Multiple Choice

In the food chain containing the carrot, rabbit, and fox, the fox is a...

• Primary consumer

• Secondary consumer

• Tertiary consumer

• Producer

Multiple Choice

In the food chain containing the grain, grasshopper, bird, and fox, the fox is a...

• Primary consumer

• Secondary consumer

• Tertiary consumer

• Producer

Predators will hunt and kill their food (prey)

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​Note: Organisms (such as deer) that eat plants are NOT predators

Predators

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​Prey are hunted, killed, and eaten by predators

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Note: Organisms that are eaten by primary consumers are NOT prey

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​Prey

Multiple Choice

Observe the image. All of the following are examples of a predator-prey relationship except-

• Frog-grasshopper

• Deer-trees

• snake-mouse

• Eagle-frog

Parasites get their energy from a host. Many times the host is harmed in this process, sometimes leading to death. Usually, parasites suck blood from their host.

​​Parasite

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Hosts are the organisms that are harmed by parasites.

​​Host

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Decomposers break down dead or decaying organisms. This returns nutrients back into the soil for plants or organisms living in the soil to use for energy.

​​Decomposer

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Multiple Choice

All things in an ecosystem are categorized as biotic or abiotic.

• True

• False

Multiple Choice

All living things in an ecosystem are either a producer or a consumer

• True

• False

Multiple Choice

Hosts suck the blood from parasites to get their energy

• True

• False

Multiple Choice

An example of a predator-prey relationship is a caterpillar eating leaves

• True

• False

Multiple Choice

A rabbit eating grass is an example of a producer-consumer relationship

• True

• False

Multiple Choice

A flea or a tick biting a dog is an example of a parasite-host relationship.

• True

• False