Student Name: Ebony Goodridge Due Date: 18/11/2010

Essential Biology 5.1: Ecosystems & Communities

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Cite all sources using the CSE method (or ISO 690 Numerical in Word). The first example has been done for you.

Complete the self-assessment rubric before submitting to Moodle. Avoid printing this if possible.

1. Define the following terms:

Species: A group of organisms that can interbreed to produce fertile offspring. [ CITATION
Ste09 \l 1033 ]

Habitat: The habitat in which a species usually lives in

Population: A group of organisms of the same species living in the same area at the same time.

Community: A group of populations living and interacting with each other.

Ecosystem: A community and its a biotic (non-living) environment.

Ecology: the study of relationships between living organisms and between organisms and their
environment.

Niche: the relational position of a species or population in its ecosystem to each other.

Biodiversity: the diversity of plant and animal life in a particular habitat.

Trophic level: the position an organism occupies on the food chain.

2. Complete the tree below with definitions and examples of each type of feeding strategy.
Distinguish between the feeding strategies at each level of the diagram.(Answers at bottom)

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 Student Name: Ebony Goodridge Due Date: 18/11/2010
Essential Biology 5.1: Ecosystems & Communities

ANSWER TO 2.

Autotrophy: self feeding, organisms which produce their own food from organic molecules.
Heterotrophy: other source feeding, organisms which derive energy from other living
organisms.
Producers: a) Photo autotrophy: photosynthesis (gets energy from the sun), green plants,
phytoplankton, and algae.
b) Chemo autotrophy: chemosynthesis( collect energy from certain chemicals),
deep see chemosynthetic bacteria.
Consumers: ingest organic matter which is living or recently killed.
a) Primary consumers eat producers (herbivores)
b) Secondary consumers eat other consumers (carnivores, omnivores)
Decomposers: derive energy from non-living organic matter. (Carbon, Hydrogen, Oxygen make
up organic matter.)
a) Detrivores ingest non-living organic matter (earthworms, woodlice)
b) Saprotrophs live in or on non-living organic matter, secreting digestive enzymes
into it and absorbing digestive products (bacteria and fungi)

3. Food chains represent the flow of energy and nutrients in a series of feeding relationships.

Give one example of a marine food chain (min. 4 organisms)

Phytoplankton --> Zooplankton --> Krill --> Whale

Give one example of a terrestrial food chain (min. 4 organisms)

Arctic Willow --> Lemming --> Snowy Owl --> Arctic Wolf

Give one other example of a food chain (min. 4 organisms)

Saw Grass --> Freshwater Fungi --> Crickets --> Toad --> Banded Water Snake

4. Describe what is meant by a food web.

Food webs show all of the feeding relationships within a habitat.

5. The food web below shows some coral reef feeding relationships;

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 Student Name: Ebony Goodridge Due Date: 18/11/2010
Essential Biology 5.1: Ecosystems & Communities

a. Identify species in the following trophic levels:

i. Producers: phytoplankton and algae

ii. Primary consumers: sea whip, parrot fish, turtles, marine invertebrates.

iii. Secondary consumers: reef sharks, snappers, groupers.

6. On a separate sheet, construct a freshwater food web based on the following information:

Organism Energy sources

Water crowfoot Sunlight
Cased caddisfly larva Micro-plants, algae, particles of dead plants and animals
Damselfly nymph Micro-plants, algae, particles of dead plants and animals
Mayfly nymph Micro-plants, algae, particles of dead plants and animals
Dragonfly Other adult insects and small flies
Duck All nymphs, all plants, snails, tadpoles, young frogs
Freshwater Shrimp Particles of dead plants and animals
Water vole Plants
Algae Sunlight
Otter Fish, frogs and newts
Water starwort Sunlight
Pond snail Microplants, all water plants and algae
Alderfly nymph Micro-plants, algae, particles of dead plants and animals
Pond skater Particles of dead plants and animals
Frog Mayfly, midge larvae, pond skater, caddisfly, small flies
Tadpole Micro-plants, algae
Micro-plants Sunlight
Great diving beetle Water flea, snails, tadpole, all nymphs
Bullhead fish Diving beetle, tadpole, all nymphs, water flea, snail, midge larvae
Adapted from: http://www.cornwallriversproject.org.uk/education/education_pack.htm

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 Student Name: Ebony Goodridge Due Date: 18/11/2010
Essential Biology 5.1: Ecosystems & Communities

7. For the food web created above:

a. Identify organisms in each of the trophic levels.
Producers: water crowfoot, micro plants, water starwort, algae.
Primary Consumer: pond snail, tadpole, shrimp, mayfly nymph.
Secondary Consumer: Great diving beetle, dragonfly.
Tertiary Consumer: Otter, Duck, Bullhead Fish.

b. Identify organisms that fit more than one trophic level.

Shrimp and Tadpole.

c. Identify those which could be classed as detritivores

8. Suggest why it is sometimes difficult to classify organisms into trophic levels.

It is sometimes difficult to classify organisms into trophic levels because they sometimes fit
more than one category and therefore you have to decide which trophic level is the best fit.

9. Outline why numbers of organisms are smaller at higher trophic levels.

The numbers of organisms are smaller at higher trophic levels because not many organisms
survive to eat other ones. You have to be at the top of the food chain to be able to survive and
reach higher trophic levels because no other organism can eat you.

10. State the original source of energy for almost all communities.
The original source of energy for almost all communities is the sun.

11. Explain how energy flows through a community, including why energy transfers are never 100%
efficient.
Sunlight is the main source of energy and it starts flowing through the community when the

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 Student Name: Ebony Goodridge Due Date: 18/11/2010
Essential Biology 5.1: Ecosystems & Communities

producer absorbs the energy and the energy is than passed up along the food chain once the
animal gets eaten. Energy transfers are never 100% efficient because every time the energy
flows through the food chain, energy is being lost at each stage due to respiration and nutrients
being recycled.

12. State the function of a pyramid of energy.

The function of a pyramid of energy is to be a graphic representation of the amount of energy
that is in each different trophic level of the food chain.

13. Give an example of a unit of measurement used in a pyramid of energy, giving a description of
each component.
An example of a unit of measurement used in a pyramid of energy is KJ which stands for kilo
joules.

14. “Energy flows through an ecosystem, nutrients are recycled.”

Explain this statement with the aid of a flow chart. Include the roles of saprotrophic bacteria and fungi
Nutrients are being recycled because they need to conserve the energy that the producer gets from the
sunlight and give it to the other organisms. For example, between the saprotrophic bacteria and fungi;
get their nutrients from dead organic matter, which would than mean that the nutrients are being
recycled.

15. Outline three examples of cycles of inorganic nutrients. For each, outline the uses of the
nutrients in living organisms, its method of transfer into and through the food chain and how it
is returned to the inorganic nutrient pool.
a. Carbon-
b. Nitrogen-
c. Calcium-

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