Ecosystems Unit
Name __________________
Period ___
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Key Learning:
All living and nonliving things on our planet are connected.
Unit Essential Question:
How are the living and
nonliving things connected in an ecosystem?
Concept: Energy Flow In
Concept:
and Function
An Ecosystem
Interactions
Lesson Essential
Lesson Essential
Lesson Essential Questions:
Questions:
Questions:
1. How are population
sizes determined?
1. How do adaptations
increase an organism’s
chance of survival?
1. How do I describe the flow
of energy through an
ecosystem?
2. How do limiting factors
affect the carrying
capacity of an
environment?
2. How do I know how much
energy I am receiving when I
eat different foods?
Concept: What’s In
Concept:
An Ecosystem?
2. How do you identify
what is in an
ecosystem?
Structure
Among Organisms
Lesson Essential
Questions:
3. How does the structure
affect the function of
an organism?
1. How do I describe
the relationship
between organisms
in an ecosystem?
2. How do I display
the interactions
among organisms in
an ecosystem?
Vocabulary:
Vocabulary:
Vocabulary:
Vocabulary:
Population
Dichotomous Key
Trophic Level
Food Chain
Sampling
Structure
Autotrophs
Food Web
Abiotic Factor
Function
Heterotrophs
Symbiosis
Producers/Consumers
Commensalism
Herbivore/Carnivore/Omnivore
Mutualism
Decomposers
Parasitism
Biotic Factor
1
Population Sampling
Directions: In your groups, complete the diagram below and answer the questions at the
bottom. (10 points)
1. How would you go about figuring out the number of students at Talley without counting each student or
looking it up on the computer?
___________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
2. Grass is a living organism and there is lots of it. How would you go about counting how many blades of grass
are on the field inside the track?
___________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
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Investigation #1: Sampling Populations
Directions: Complete the following investigation in your groups. Be sure to complete each
step in sequence. Then answer the reflection questions. (15 points)
Materials:

1 paper cup with approximately 5 ounces of dry beans

1 measuring cup

2-18 inch pieces of string
Procedure/Data:
Pretend that the beans you measure out are a flock of shorebirds. Follow your
teacher’s directions to try and “count the birds”. Record your answers below.
1. You will work in your group. Each bean represents a bird. Together, guess how many
bean-birds are in the paper cup. Do not count the beans individually! Record your
paper cup estimate on the data sheet.
How many birds do you guess are in your cup? (1 point) _________________
2. Spread the beans on your desktop in an area no larger than 12-18 inches square.
Your desktop represents the beach.
3. Observe the bird-beans on the desktop-beach. Without touching the beans, visually
try to divide the beans into groups with 5 beans in each group.
How many groups of five beans in each group do you estimate? (1 point)
_______________
Multiply the number of groups by 5 beans in each group and record the number of
“groups of 5” estimate: (1 point) ____________________
4. Observe the beans again. Visually, try to divide the “flock” into four equal sections.
Lay the two pieces of string across the flock to divide the flock into four sections
of equal area.
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5. Count all the birds in one section (square).
How many birds are in one (of the four) section? (1 point) ______________
Multiply the answer to by 4. (1 point) ___________________
6. Count the number of birds in the other 3 sections and add then together to get the
total number of birds: (1 point)
__________ + __________ + __________ + __________ = __________________
(Total number of birds)
7. How far off was your guess (answer to #1)? (1 point) _____________________
Investigation Reflection:
1. Which estimate was closer to the actual number of birds? Was it the paper cup
estimate, the “groups of 5” estimate, or the four sections estimate? (2 points)
______________________________________
2. Without asking other groups for the number of bird-beans they have, how could you
determine the number of bird-beans in the entire class? (2 points)
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
3. Describe how biologists estimate flocks of shorebirds. (1 point)
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
4. Why is population sampling important? (1 point)
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
5. What are some of the reasons for a decrease or increase in populations? (2 points)
Decrease:____________________________________________________________
Increase:____________________________________________________________
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Evolving Beaks – Evolution and
Adaptation
Directions: Answer the following questions using the slideshow, discussions, and
video. (15 points)
1. What is natural selection? Give an example of natural selection in the video. (2 points)
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
2. Environmental stresses could be… (5 points)
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
3. …and can cause a species to… (3 points)
___________________________________
___________________________________
___________________________________
4. Since being on the Galapagos, species have evolved from their original ancestors and
show structural differences. (For example, some lizards have developed shorter tails so
they can run faster). Pick two of the species mentioned in the video and explain how each
has evolved from their original ancestors. (4 points)
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
5. The point of life is to (1 point) __________________________________________
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What the Beak?
Part A: Brainstorming Bird Adaptations in General
Bird Adaptations: General Background
General Bird Adaptations
1. Feathers are a unique adaptation found only in birds. Two kinds of feathers are found
on all birds: Down feathers are for insulation and contour feathers are the strong
outer feathers used for flight. They are also the bird’s coloration. Feathers are an
adaptation used to help birds survive temperature extremes.
2. Hollow bones help keep the bird’s weight low. Most of the bird’s weight is in the breast
and wings (where flight muscles are).
3. Air sacs enable a bird to take in enough oxygen to help transform energy into a usable
form for flight. Birds have lungs like humans, but they require more oxygen intake.
Air sacs, rather like balloons, extend from the lungs. During inhalation and exhalation,
air flows through the lung and the air sacs to maximize the absorption of oxygen.
Specific Shorebird Adaptations
1. Long, pointed wings for long distant flight. This adaptation enables the shorebirds to
fly fast and far.
2. Camouflage plumage serves as protection.
3. Long legs are suited for walking along the shoreline or mud and help in food gathering.
4. Long toes for stability and walking.
5. Bills, or beaks, are used for picking up food, nest construction, and courtship as well as
preening and defense.
6. Oil gland helps keep a shorebird’s feathers waterproof.
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Environmental Concerns
1. Habitat disturbance can occur during migration preventing birds from stopping at their
traditional stopovers to refuel.
2. Pollution such as plastic debris, fishing line and runoff can degrade shorebird habitat.
3. Habitat destruction.
After reading, brainstorm within your groups to answer the following questions:
1. Name 3 adaptations specific to all birds. (3 points)
_________________________________________
_________________________________________
_________________________________________
2. What type of adaptations do shorebirds have to help them survive? (2 points)
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
3. What advantage would these adaptations provide the shorebird as compared to nonshorebirds attempting to survive in a near shore environment? (3 points)
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
4. What do shorebirds eat? (2 points)
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
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7
Part B: Modeling Beak Adaptations
Mr. Herlihy will give you instructions on materials to collect as well as what procedure to
follow. Record your groups’ data in the table provided.
1. Mr. Herlihy has constructed a “feeding area” for your diverse population of
shorebirds.
Pipe cleaners = worms
washers = crustaceans
Marbles = snails
puffed rice = horseshoe crab eggs
2. Your group will be given a cup. The cup represents your bird’s stomach. Place food
obtained from the feeding area in the cup (stomach). The cup may not be used to
gather food.
3. Mr. Herlihy will give each group tweezers, scissors, a spoon, and a clothespin. Each
tool represents a different kind of bird beak, allowing the bird to obtain food (See
chart below).
4. Using one utensil at a time, you will simulate a bird feeding. Mr. Herlihy will provide
you with one minute in which to obtain food using this utensil. The first round will
be practice so that you figure out what food items are easiest for you to
“eat.”
5. Now simulate all of the birds feeding at the same time again. This time you will
record the food you “eat.”
6. Create bar graphs to compare the individual feeding data to the competition data
when all birds were feeding at the same time.
7. Compare how effective each beak type was in a competition scenario. Discuss
results.
Data Table: (8 points)
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Graph: (10 points total)
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Investigation Reflection:
1. How are different beaks adapted to feed on a specific type of food? (2 points)
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
2. What types of beak adaptations are best suited for shorebirds? (1 point)
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
3. How does the size of the population (number of birds feeding) and the size of the
feeding areas affect how much food is consumed? (2 points)
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
4. Which bird has the most efficient beak (easiest for gathering food)? Use evidence to
explain your answer. (2 points)
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
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Structure/Function Lab
Directions: There are 5 stations set up around the room. You will spend 5 minutes at each
station completing the following table. (20 points)
Organism
Structure & Function
Environment
Advantage
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Energy Flow Through an Ecosystem
Directions: Answer the following questions during our discussion (30 Points)
1. Where does the energy in an ecosystem originate? (1 point) _____________________
2. How do plants and animals have a symbiotic relationship? Be specific. (2 points)
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
3. What happens to the energy that producers make during photosynthesis? (2 points)
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
4. Consumers that eat producers are… (2 points)
________________________________________
________________________________________
5. What happens to the energy the primary consumer gets from the producer? (3 points)
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
6. A consumer that eats another consumer for energy… (4 points)
________________________________________
________________________________________
________________________________________
________________________________________
7. What happened to the energy consumed by the secondary consumer? (3 points)
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
8. Humans are examples of ___________________________. (1 point)
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9. Draw an example of a food chain in the space below. (You may not use the one on the
screen except you must start with the Sun). (5 points)
10. Copy the food chain you see on the screen. Be sure to use colors, label, and make a key.
(7 points)
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