Name
Class
Date
Food Chains and Webs
Vocabulary
Trophic Level – each “level” in an ecosystem is made up of organisms that share the same function in
the food chain to the sources of energy. For example, producers would be in the same trophic level as
other producers. Primary consumers would be in the same trophic level as other primary consumers.
Secondary consumers would be in the same trophic level as other secondary consumers, etc…
Biomes—Earth is divided into different areas known as biomes. Each biome is defined by the types of
biotic and abiotic factors they contain. The number and types of producers and consumers in an
ecosystem depend on the region where the ecosystem exists. In this activity you will view organisms
from biomes like the rainforest, forests, swamps, oceans, and deserts.
Food chain—a sequence in which energy is transferred from one organism to the next. When one
organism is eaten by another, another link is added to the chain. See the example below. (→ = “are
consumed by”)
Plants → Land Snails → Mice → Raccoons → Bacteria
Game Rules
The object of the game, “How a Food Chain Is Formed”, is to use all five of your cards to complete a
single food chain. You will need to use the Food Web Sheet to make sure your food chain is accurate.
1.
Obtain a habitat card set and matching Food Web Sheet from your teacher.
2.
Each member of the group will take turns being the dealer (rotate clockwise). The oldest person
in the group will be the first dealer.
3.
Shuffle the deck carefully without bending the cards (please do not ‘bridge’).
4.
Deal five cards to each person in the group. Place the remaining cards face down in the middle
of the table. This will be called the draw pile.
5.
The person to the left of the dealer will go first and will draw a card from the draw pile in the
middle of the table. Since each player may only hold five cards at a time, the person who just
picked an extra card must then decide which card to return. That player will begin a second pile
in the middle of the table called the discard pile. [GT students will discard a card first so they
have four, and then draw a card].
6.
Play continues in clockwise order until a food chain is formed using all five cards.
• If cards run out in the draw pile, reshuffle the discard pile to use as the new draw pile.
• No top of the food chain organism can eat another top of the food chain organism.
• When a player says they win (completed a food chain), it must be checked by another player
to make sure they did not make any mistakes.
• You can only win on your turn. You cannot trade cards with any other player.
2/10/16 2:30 AM
1 of 2
Oelfke (elf-ka)
Post-Lab Questions
Answer in complete sentences.
1.
What does the arrow “→“ mean in a food chain?
2.
What is a trophic level?
3.
What factors determine what a biome is categorized as?
4.
Do you think a habitat with more secondary consumers than primary consumers is healthy?
Explain your answer.
5.
BCR. What would happen if a predator were removed from a food chain? What would happen
to the organisms that are on a trophic level below it? What would happen to the organisms that
are on a trophic level above it?
2/10/16 2:30 AM
2 of 2
Oelfke (elf-ka)