Chapter 5
Interactions in Ecosystems
5th Grade Science
What is an Ecosystem?
• ____________
- all living and non-living things
Ecosystem
in an area.
• An ecosystem is any place where _______
are
living
found.
Population
• ___________
- a group of organisms of one
species that live in an area at the same time.
Ex: a group of oak trees or an ant colony
Community
Community - made up of all of the populations in
• __________
an area.
– Members of a community depend on each other for
food
reproduction
________,
_________,
and _____________.
shelter
Non-living parts of an ecosystem include:
-_________________
air
-_________________
water
soil
-_________________
-__________________
temperature
Ecosystem Interactions
interact
• Living and non-living things _______
in an
ecosystem.
depend
• Living things ________
on non-living things for
survival.
role
• Each part of an ecosystem has a ______,
a job
or function that they perform.
• The whole system works to meet the needs of
all of the parts.
Populations in an Ecosystem
• ____________
can live and grow only where
Populations
their needs can be met in the ecosystem.
• If the needs of the population are not met:
smaller
– The number of members will get _________
– Some members might ________
away
move
survive
– Some will not __________.
Biomes
Tropical Rainforest Biomes - located near the
• __________________
equator and are warm all year long.
• Tropical Rainforests have more species
_________
than all other ________.
biomes
• Tropical Rainforest Species:
– _________
Kinkajou
Basilisik Lizard
– ____________
– __________
orchids
Deciduous Forest Biomes
• Grow in cooler places that do not have large
amounts of ____.
rain
Deciduous Trees
• ____________
- lose their leaves - oaks, elms,
maples.
diseases
• Populations fluctuate due to _______,
_________,
overcrowding __________.
predators
• Why do trees lose their leaves in the winter?
• Why is overcrowding a problem in the forest?
Grassland Biomes
grasslands
• ___________
- biomes covered with many
types of grasses and few trees.
decaying
• ___________
grasses form ________
soils.
fertile
small
• _______
amount of rain
• Animals: bison
_______, ________,
_________
antelope
Prairie dogs - eat
the grasses that the prairie provides.
• ________
in the grasslands are wolves and
predators
bison
Populations in the Grassland
decrease
• _________
when habitat changes - ______,
climate
________,
________________
enemies
Water and food supply
• ____________________
Declining population of wolves - grasslands changed
into farmlands. Prairie dogs decreased in
numbers because their food source was taken
away and they had less space to roam.
Gray wolves
• ___________
- lightly populated in Northern
States
Taiga Biome
• _________
biome that covers much of Canada
forest
and Russia in places that are cold and fairly dry.
• Most trees in the _____have
needles – pines
tiaga
• Needles are _______
that conduct
leaves
photosynthesis and provide food for the tree.
• Needles have a ______coating
that prevent water
waxy
loss
• tree
• Animals – bears, elk, moose and wolves – fur to
keep warm
Desert Biomes
desert - areas that receive less than 25
• ______
centimeters of rain or snow each year.
Root systems close to
• Desert plants have large _________
the surface that allow them quickly take up
water from rain.
• Animals – sleep during the day and look for
food at night to avoid the high temperatures
• Largest deserts are found in ______
and SW
____
Africa
Asia
Tundra Biome
• _______
biome with little _______.
cold
rain
• _____________
area of the world
Most Northern
• ___________
Limiting Factors include the amount of water,
food, and space or shelter that is availible to
an organism.
• ______________
- the number of organisms
Carrying capacity
that can live in a place
Limiting factor in the tundra
• ____________________
-short time of warm
weather
Water Ecosystems
rivers
1. ___________
2. ___________
Wetlands
3. ___________
Coral Reefs
The Deep Sea
4. ___________
Water ecosystems include animals that spend
much of their time on land.
adapted
Plants and animals are _________
to live in this
environment.
Wetlands
Wetland
• ________
- partly covered with water or is
flooded at least part of the year.
sawgrass
• _________
wetland has many different types
of grasses – ex. Everglades
Swamp
• _________
- wetland with many trees and
bushes.
• __________
- places where rivers flow into
Estuaries
oceans.
Benefits of Wetlands
filters
• _________
- plants, soils, and microorganisms
• _________
- plants, soils, and microorganisms
Cleaners
clean the water
food
shelter to many wetland
• Provides _____
and ______
species.
Coral Reefs
Coral Reefs
• __________
grow in areas where there are
not many nutrients – extra nutrients will help
the enemies of coral to grow and harm the
coral.
• Coral reefs _______
shore lines from ocean
protect
storms
• Coral reefs have provided ________
medicines
• As corals grow and die, their ________
parts
skeletal
pile up to make the reefs
The Deep Sea
cold
dark and has very high
• The deep sea is ____,
____,
______________.
Water pressure
sunlight
• ________
cannot reach these depths – no
plants grow.
• Animals bodies are _______
to live under the
adapted
crushing pressure of the water.
Competition
• Organisms in an ecosystem compete over:
space
– ________
– ________
water
light
– ________
– ________
food
mates
– ________
– An organisms that cannot compete may die or
move away to get its needs met.
Competition cont’d
• Animals of the same species may compete
with each other and with organisms of other
species for resources.
• Plants compete for resources such as
water
space
light
_______,
________,
_________,
and
________.
nutrients
Invasive species
native
• _____________
- may outcompete ________
species for resources
Symbiosis
• ___________
- a long term relationship
Symbiosis
between different species.
• In symbiosis, one of the species is always
helped
________,
the other species in the
relationship is either _______,
_________,
or
helped
harmed
____________.
Not affected
• A symbiotic relationship where one species is
parasites - feed on other
harmed involves _______
host
organisms - _______.
Food chains and Food Webs
• Every organism needs energy
_______ in order to live
• Energy moves through an ecosystem in
Food chains
Energy chains
___________,
___________,
or
____________
Food webs
Producers
• __________
- organisms that make their own
food such as ________,
__________,
and
plants
protists
other _____________.
microorganisms
• Producers get the energy that they need from
sun
the _______.
Consumers
consumers
• ___________
- organisms that cannot make
their own food
animals
• All ________
are consumers
herbivores
• ___________
- only eat plants
• ___________
- predators, eat only other
carnivores
prey
animals called ______
• __________
- eat plants and animals
omnivores
decomposers
• ___________
- eat waste or dead organisms