5th grade ecosystems and food chains

Example

Which of these is a decomposer?

1. Fungi and bacteria are the main decomposers.
2. So the answer is: mushroom (fungus)

Answer: mushroom (fungus)

Example

Here is a pond food web. (An arrow points from the food to the animal that eats it.) algae → mayfly larva algae → tadpole pondweed → pond snail algae → pond snail mayfly larva → dragonfly larva tadpole → dragonfly larva mayfly larva → stickleback (small fish) dragonfly larva → stickleback (small fish) stickleback (small fish) → heron tadpole → heron Which of these does the heron eat?

1. tadpole → heron
2. So the answer is: tadpole

Answer: tadpole

Example

Sea otters eat sea urchins, and sea urchins eat kelp. Hunters remove most otters. What happens to the kelp forest?

1. With fewer predators, urchin numbers rise and they overgraze the kelp.
2. So the answer is: Urchins increase and eat much of the kelp.

Answer: Urchins increase and eat much of the kelp.

Example

Why do the arrows in a food chain point from the food to the eater?

1. Arrows follow energy from producer to consumers.
2. So the answer is: They show the direction energy flows.

Answer: They show the direction energy flows.