Antarctic Marine Food Web Game Follow along with the questions to prompt you through the game. Click here to begin http://d3tt741pwxqwm0.cloudfront.net/WGBH/conv16/conv16-intoceanfoodweb/index.html Click on “Food Chains/Webs” and answer the questions as you read through the article. 1. Primary producers harvest what? 2. What is an example of a primary producer that YOU eat? A few things before moving on… Trophic levels are the levels that move up the food chains. These include primary producers, secondary and tertiary consumers, and decomposers. When this article refers to higher consumers, know that they are more commonly split into secondary or tertiary consumers. Secondary consumers eat primary consumers. Tertiary consumers eat secondary consumers. The food chain ends when the top predator has little to no natural enemies. 3. Based on that knowledge, what kind of consumer are you? Primary, secondary, or tertiary? 4. Decomposers break down nutrients back into the soil. What are some decomposers that you can find in your yard? When reading this article, it reminds you that the food chain goes in a linear path, BUT the food chain isn’t always that simple. Animals usually eat more than one thing. Look at the food chain pyramid above. It is a simple linear food web, but some of the consumers eat more than what is depicted in this pyramid. Tell me… 5. What could the snake also eat besides a rabbit? What could the hawk eat besides a snake? List one for each. Click on “Trophic Table” and review the table, it will help you in the game. When you are ready, click on “Food Web Game”. Energy flows through the food web, the arrows show the flow of the energy from one animal to the other. If the arrow is going from one to the next that means the first organism was eaten by the last. For example, C B. C was eaten by B. C is also eaten by F. Think about this when completing the food web game. Use the “Trophic Table” to give you hints if you get stuck. Check your answers and when you get them all right, fill in your answers below. HINT: E is a primary producer. ABCDEFGHKnow that you have an understanding of a food web. Answer these questions below. 6. Think about this food web. Wheat Rat Owl a. If a human steps in and wants to get rid of the rats, what do you think would happen to owls population? b. If you use rat poison, do you think it affects owls? If so, how does it affect the owl? If you do not, why will it not affect the owl? We will discuss this in our next class. Antarctic Marine Food Web Game Follow along with the questions to prompt you through the game. Click here to begin http://d3tt741pwxqwm0.cloudfront.net/WGBH/conv16/conv16-intoceanfoodweb/index.html Click on “Food Chains/Webs” and answer the questions as you read through the article. 1. Primary producers harvest what? - the suns energy 2. What is an example of a primary producer that YOU eat? - Spinach, lettuce, carrots etc. A few things before moving on… Trophic levels are the levels that move up the food chains. These include primary producers, secondary and tertiary consumers, and decomposers. When this article refers to higher consumers, know that they are more commonly split into secondary or tertiary consumers. Secondary consumers eat primary consumers. Tertiary consumers eat secondary consumers. The food chain ends when the top predator has little to no natural enemies. 3. Based on that knowledge, what kind of consumer are you? Primary, secondary, or tertiary? - tertiary 4. Decomposers break down nutrients back into the soil. What are some decomposers that you can find in your yard? - mushrooms, earthworms, bacteria 5. When reading this article, it reminds you that the food chain goes in a linear path, BUT the food chain isn’t always that simple. Animals usually eat more than one thing. Look at the food chain pyramid above. It is a simple linear food web, but some of the consumers eat more than what is depicted in this pyramid. Tell me… What could the snake also eat besides a rabbit? What could the hawk eat besides a snake? List one for each. - Snake can eat a mouse, egg, bird, squirrel - Hawk can eat a rabbit, bird or squirrel Click on “Trophic Table” and review the table, it will help you in the game. When you are ready, click on “Food Web Game”. Energy flows through the food web, the arrows show the flow of the energy from on animal to the other. If the arrow is going from one to the next that means the first organism was eaten by the last. For example, C B. C was eaten by B. C is also eaten by F. Think about this when completing the food web game. Use the “Trophic Table” to give you hints if you get stuck. Check your answers and when you get them all right, fill in your answers below. HINT: E is a primary producer. A- Blue Whale B- Killer Whale C- Fish D- Krill E- Algae F- Seal G- Birds H- Bacteria Know that you have an understanding of a food web. Answer these questions below. 6. Think about this food web. Wheat Rat Owl a. If a human steps in and wants to get rid of the rats, what do you think would happen to owls population? - owl population will decrease from lack of food supply b. If you use rat poison, do you think it affects owls? If so, how does it affect the owl? If you do not, why will it not affect the owl? We will discuss this in our next class. - Yes, the owls will be affected. Owls will eat the poisoned rats and will die or bring the infected meat back to their young. This causes a ripple effect in the ecosystem. Poisoned rats can cause a huge impact on more than just owls. This affects snakes, hawks and other predators that eat rats. Ultimately, the rat’s population can increase from the decrease in predators. Rats reproduce faster than the predator’s reproduction rate.
