Name______________________________________Date______________________Period___________
Food Web Project
Designing Food Chains and Food Webs
(Note: Your illustrated food web should have more labels than the above example. See page 2 for details)
Purpose of the Activity:
1.
2.
3.
4.
Differentiate between a food chain and food web
Identify and distinguish the main components of an ecosystem (producers, consumers, decomposers)
Explain the pathway of energy through trophic levels (from producers to top predators)
Analyze the reduction of energy available at successive trophic levels (up the energy pyramid)
Background: (Source: www.epa.gov)
All organisms in an ecosystem need energy to survive. This energy is obtained through food. Producers obtain
energy by making their own food whereas consumers must feed on other organisms for energy. This dependence on
other organisms for food leads to feeding relationships that interconnect all living things in an ecosystem. A food
chain illustrates the simplest kind of feeding relationship. For example, in a forest ecosystem, a grasshopper feeds on
plants. The grasshopper is consumed by a spider and the spider is eaten by a bird. Finally, that bird is hunted by a
hawk. A food chain clearly shows this pathway of food consumption.
You could probably think of another food chain for a forest ecosystem. In fact, many different food chains exist in
ecosystems. Although there are many different kinds of food chains, each food chain follows the same general
pattern. A link in a food chain is called a trophic, or feeding level. The trophic levels are numbered as the first,
second, third, and fourth levels, starting with the producers.
Each of the trophic levels is occupied by a certain kind of organism. Producers are always in the first trophic level
since they do not feed on another organism. Consumers occupy the rest of the trophic levels. The second trophic
level is the first consumer in the food chain and is called a primary consumer. Primary consumers eat plants and are
therefore herbivores or omnivores. The next consumer in the food chain is the secondary consumer. The secondary
consumer is in the third trophic level. Since the secondary consumer feeds on another animal, it is a carnivore or an
omnivore. Similarly, the tertiary consumer occupies the fourth trophic level, and is a carnivore. The last link in a food
chain is also referred to as the top carnivore since it is at the top of the food chain and is not hunted by other animals.
1
Name______________________________________Date______________________Period___________
Problem Statement: Are food chains and food webs the same? How do organisms transfer energy?
Vocabulary: food chain, food web, producer, consumer, decomposer, energy transfer, trophic level, heterotroph,
autotroph, saprotroph, herbivore, carnivore, omnivore, primary consumer, secondary consumer, tertiary consumer
Procedures:
You will construct a food web. Please follow the checklist below to ensure that all requirements are met. Each
organism should be a COLOR DRAWING or a printed picture that is COLORED in order to receive full credit.
1. Number of Organisms
a. 2 decomposers
b. 4 producers
c. 3 primary consumers
d. 2 secondary consumers
e. 1 tertiary consumer
2. Method of nutrition identified (labeled) for each organism
a. Autotroph, Heterotroph or Saprotroph (producer, consumer, or decomposer)
b. Herbivore, Carnivore, or Omnivore (for heterotrophs/consumers only)
3. Type of consumer identified (for consumers only)
a. Primary
b. Secondary
c. Tertiary
4. Organisms are arranged according to proper trophic levels (easy to identify each level)
5. Arrows indicate the direction of energy transfer
a. Must be in the proper direction
b. Must be easy to follow
Helpful Resources (use class page copy to click on links)
Decomposers
HowStuffWorks Food Chains and Food Webs
Food Web Information
BrainPOP Food Web game
Energy Game
It starts with Producers Song
BrainPop Invasion Game
Interactive Food Chain Websites
**PLUS CLASS NOTES AND ANY RESOURCES LISTED IN THE DOCUMENTS OR RESOURCES SECTION OF CLASS PAGE**
For full credit, the following must be labeled for each organism on your food web:





Producer/Autotroph (at least 4)
Consumer/Heterotroph/Primary Consumer/Herbivore (at least 3)
Consumer/Heterotroph/Secondary Consumer/Carnivore or Omnivore (at least 2)
Consumer/Heterotroph/Tertiary Consumer/Carnivore/Top Predator (at least 1)
Decomposer/Saprotroph (at least 2)
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Name______________________________________Date______________________Period___________
Rubric for Food Web Project
Criteria
Spelling and
Grammar
4
3
2
1
There are no
grammatical mistakes on
the poster
There are 1-2
grammatical
mistakes on the
poster
Presentation poster
is mostly engaging
and stimulating in its
use of color, pictures
and text.
There are 3-4
grammatical
mistakes on the
poster
Presentation poster
is somewhat
engaging and
stimulating in its use
of color, pictures
and text.
Presentation
demonstrates
marginal knowledge
of all trophic levels
present (producer,
primary consumer,
secondary
consumer, tertiary
consumer,
decomposer)
There are 5 or more
grammatical
mistakes on the
poster
Presentation poster
is not engaging and
stimulating in its
use of color,
pictures and text.
Artwork/Presentation Presentation poster is
engaging and stimulating
in its use of color,
pictures and text.
Identification of
Trophic Levels
Presentation
demonstrates exemplary
knowledge of all trophic
levels present (producer,
primary consumer,
secondary consumer,
tertiary consumer,
decomposer)
Identification of
Method of Nutrition
Producers, herbivores,
carnivores, omnivores,
and decomposers are all
identified for each
organism on the web
Arrows/Layout
The food web is easy to
follow and all arrows are
drawn in the proper
direction to show the
flow of energy through
the ecosystem
Presentation
demonstrates nearly
exemplary
knowledge of all
trophic levels
present (producer,
primary consumer,
secondary
consumer, tertiary
consumer,
decomposer)
All but one of
Producers,
herbivores,
carnivores,
omnivores, and
decomposers are all
identified for each
organism on the
web
The food web is
somewhat easy to
follow and arrows
are drawn in the
proper direction to
show the flow of
energy through the
ecosystem
3
All but two of
Producers,
herbivores,
carnivores,
omnivores, and
decomposers are all
identified for each
organism on the
web
The food web is
marginally easy to
follow and arrows
are drawn in the
proper direction to
show the flow of
energy through the
ecosystem
Presentation fails to
demonstrate
exemplary
knowledge of all
trophic levels
present (producer,
primary consumer,
secondary
consumer, tertiary
consumer,
decomposer)
Three or more
Producers,
herbivores,
carnivores,
omnivores, and
decomposers are
not identified for
each organism on
the web
The food web is not
easy to follow and
all arrows are not
drawn in the proper
direction to show
the flow of energy
through the
ecosystem