Definitions
Any type of living creature (plant, animal, bacteria, fungus)
Organism
The process by which a producer makes its own food.
photosynthesis
The main type of vegetation in a grassland ecosystem.
grass
What is the name of Alberta's provincial grass?
Rough Fescue
A food chain is a model that shows how food ________ passes from organism to organism.
energy
A community of living and non-living things that interact with one another and function as a unit. They are linked together by nutrient cycles and energy flows.
ecosystem
Two organisms occupying the same niche at the same time must do this.
compete
Name 4 abiotic features of grassland ecosystem.
the sun; warm, dry air; little rain; snow in winter; dark, rich soil; shallow lakes, rivers, creeks, prairie potholes; air
Name two adaptations of the short-horned lizard.
Shoots blood from its eyes with a chemical that irritates coyotes.
Has thick scales to protect it from biting ants.
Its colour camouflages the lizard in its natural environment.
Approximately _____ % of available food energy passes from one level of the food chain up to the next level.
10
The part of an ecosystem in which an organism lives.
Habitat
Name 4 things ALL organisms need to survive.
food, water, shelter/space, exchange gases
Name 2 forbs we studied in the grassland ecosystem.
Gaillardia, harebells, prairie coneflower, prairie smoke, prairie sagewort
Name 3 grassland organisms that live in burrows or dens.
Burrowing owl, Richardson's ground squirrel, American badger. Sometimes swift foxes, weasels, voles, rattlesnakes.
Name two decomposers.
Fungus and bacteria
The role or function an organism has in its ecosystem.
niche
Name 4 types of consumers.
herbivore, carnivore, omnivore, scavenger, decomposer
Name 4 prairie grass adaptations.
deep roots; grow from their base; narrow leaves; tough stems
Name 3 scavengers in the grassland ecosystem, 2 of which are insects.
burying beetle, dung beetle, swift fox, coyote, red-tailed hawk,
List a grassland food chain with 5 links in it.
various
A network of interconnected food chains that shows how food energy moves through an ecosystem.
Food web
Name 3 types of symbiosis.
commensalism, mutualism, parasitism
Name 3 grassland animals that used to live in Calgary, but over the past 150 years have been pushed out of their natural range.
Grizzly bear, bison, wolves, rattlesnake, greater prairie chicken
Which animal in our grassland ecosystem is currently extirpated in Alberta?
Greater prairie chicken
This shows how many organisms by weight are eaten at each energy level of a food chain. Producers are always at the bottom (comprise most of the biomass).
Pyramid of Numbers