Vocab
Matter
the stuff that things are made of
How do animals grow?
The new body matter comes from the food the animal eats. Animals are consumers that break down the molecules of other plants or animals and rearrange those molecules to build their own bones, muscles, and skin.
Which type of organism is usually found at the very beginning of every food chain?
Producer (They create the food matter that starts the chain.)
What is a producers main food source?
they PRODUCE their own food through photosynthesis.
Energy
the ability to make things move or change
Ms. Madrona is hiking and stumbles upon a mound of stinky brown matter. This is an example of…
Energy being produced
Matter being consumed
3. Used body matter in the form of waste
3. Used body matter in the form of waste
What is the difference between a food chain and a food web?
A food chain shows one single path of energy (who eats whom in a straight line). A food web is made of many overlapping food chains and shows all the different eating connections in an entire ecosystem.
What is another name for abiotic matter?
detritus
Environment
all the living and nonliving things in an area
Ms. Newman eats a potato and starts skipping around the playground. How is she using her food matter?
To use the matter for energy
Grass → Grasshopper → Frog → Snake
Which one is the secondary consumer?
Frog (The grasshopper is the primary consumer because it eats the producer; the frog is the secondary consumer because it eats the primary consumer.)
What does a primary consumer consume?
Producers
Biotic
living things in an ecosystem
What provides soil with nutrients?
Decomposers like bacteria, fungi (mushrooms), and earthworms break down "dead matter," such as fallen leaves, dead animals, and waste.
The Cecropia trees were burnt down in the sloth's environment in Costa Rica. How does this affect the sloth's growth AND population?
The sloths have less food to consume because the matter stored in the trees was destroyed, meaning the sloths aren't getting the food matter they need to convert into body matter. The population will start to decrease.
What happens to an animal's matter after it dies?
Decomposers (like bacteria or fungi) break down the dead body matter. This returns nutrients to the soil, which can then be used again by producers to help them grow.
Abiotic
Non-living things in an ecosystem
What are the 4 ingredients needed for photosynthesis to occur?
1. Water
2. Sunlight
3. Carbon Dioxide
4. Nutrients
Describe the food chain.
Sun → Fruit Tree → Monkey → Jaguar → Earthworm
1. The sun provides the fruit tree with energy needed for photosynthesis.
2. The monkey consumes food matter from the fruit tree.
3. The jaguar consumes the monkey and gains matter from the producer and the monkey
4. The earthworm decomposes waste from the jaguar, which includes fruit tree matter, monkey matter, and jaguar matter.
What level of consumer can thrive off of lower-level consumers?
Tertiary