Ecosystem Basics
What is an ecosystem?
A community of living organisms and their non-living environment working together.
What do we call organisms that make their own food using sunlight?
Producers
What is a food chain?
A sequence showing how energy flows from one organism to another.
What is a biome? Define and give an example
A large area with similar climate, plants, and animals (like forest, desert, tundra).
Which of the following is considered living and part of a biotic environment? Wind, soil, bacteria, or temperature
Bacteria
Name two non-living parts of an ecosystem
Sunlight and water
Name an example of a consumer.
Deer, wolf, human, etc.
In a food chain what comes first?
Name a type of ecosystem found in Alberta.
Boreal forest (taiga), grassland, foothills, parkland, or Rocky Mountains
What non-living element provides energy for green plants to make their own food?
Sunlight
How do abiotic factors affect biotic factors?
Abiotic factors like sunlight, temperature, and water determine where and how biotic things can live.
What do decomposers do in an ecosystem?
Break down dead plants and animals and return nutrients to the soil.
What does a food web show?
How multiple food chains are connected in an ecosystem.
How is a wetland different from a desert ecosystem?
Wetlands are moist and full of water, while deserts are dry with little rainfall
Which type of environment usually supports the highest variety of living species?
Prairie, wetland, tropical forest, arctic tundra
Tropical rainforest
Give an example of a terrestrial ecosystem.
Forest, grassland, desert
What kind of consumer is a bear that eats both berries and fish?
An omnivore
What happens if all the producers in a food web die?
Consumers will not have food and will die eventually too.
Why are tundra ecosystems difficult for plants to grow in?
Cold temperatures, short growing seasons, frozen soil (permafrost).
What is the chemical equation for photosynthesis?
Photosynthesis Word Equation:
Carbon dioxide + Water + Sunlight → Glucose (sugar) + Oxygen
Photosynthesis Chemical Equation:
6CO₂ + 6H₂O + light energy → C₆H₁₂O₆ + 6O₂
How do living and non-living things interact in an ecosystem
Living things rely on non-living things like air, water, and sunlight to survive, and they affect each other’s survival.
Explain the difference between a herbivore and a carnivore.
Herbivores eat plants; carnivores eat other animals.
Why is energy lost at each level of a food chain?
Because organisms use energy for life processes, and only some is passed to the next level.
Compare a forest and a grassland ecosystem. Name one way they are similar and one way they are different.
Similar: both support life
Different: trees vs. grasses, animal types, rainfall levels.
Which of the following is least likely to happen as a result of a desert climate?
Fewer types of plant and animal species
Animals conserving water in unique ways
Many species being more active after sunset
Heavy rainfall causing frequent flooding
Heavy rainfall causing frequent flooding