TCI U1: Ecosystems: Lesson 4 Decomposers

What is the role of a decomposer in an ecosystem?

• Capture the energy of the sunlight for plants to make food.

• Produce oxygen for plants and animals.

• Break down dead organisms and their wastes.

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Which organisms are examples of decomposers?

• rabbits

• fungi

• trees

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Bacteria have no way to store excess food, so in order to stay active, they

• store excess food as sugar like animals do.

• live in places where they can be surrounded by food sources.

• stay close to fungi and get energy from them.

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When a decomposer dies, its once-living material becomes waste. These wastes are then

• released into the air, soil and water of an ecosystem.

• converted into energy that can be used.

• further decomposed by producers and consumers.

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Compost takes advantage of natural processes to

• increase the temperature on Earth.

• help return matter to their ecosystem.

• remove harmful metals from the environment.

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While hiking through a nearby forest, you find some fungi growing on a tree stump. What role does the fungi play in the forest ecosystem?

• It breads down dead tree matter.

• It eats living organisms and their wastes.

• It uses sunlight to produce energy for the tree.

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you build a compost pile using kitchen waste like egg shells and banana peels. Three weeks later, you check your compost. Which of the following observations is the best evidence of decomposition?

• There was no color change.

• The kitchen scraps became smaller over time.

• The kitchen scraps and container became cold in temperature.

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While on a safari in South Africa, you see some vultures pulling meat off the bones of a a large dead mammal. Which of the following observations accurately describes how vultures are different than fungi.

• Vultures breakdown large food pieces into small food pieces.

• Vultures produce juices to digest dead material.

• Vultures break down tiny food pieces into soil.

These fallen apples will decompose and some substances from the decomposing apples will return to the apple trees. Which of the following decomposer wastes can apple trees in these forest use again?

• nutrients released into the water

• oxygen released into the water

• carbon dioxide released into the air

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Your class conducts an investigation about how moisture affects the growth of a fungus known as bread mold. To test this, you get five identical squares of bread and place each one in a a warm, dark corner of your classroom. Each piece of bread has been precut to cover one platic square grid with 144 small squares. Each square of bread is placed in a sealed tight plastic bag. The only thing you vary is the amount of water you put into each bag. Every few days, you measure the number of squares the mold covers on each slice of bread. The results of your class study are shown in the graph.

At which moisture level did the most mold grow after one week?

• 16 ml

• 4 ml

• 12 ml

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