Food ChainsFood Chainsandand

Food WebsFood Webs

Created by Mrs. MillerT. C. Walker Elementary School

Gloucester, VirginiaEdited by:Ms. J Blake

Shepard Middle School

What did he say?!What did he say?!

What is a Food Chain?What is a Food Chain?

A food chain is the path by which energy passes from one living thing to another.

What’s in a Food What’s in a Food Chain?Chain?

Producers

Consumers

Decomposers

ProducersProducers

Producers make their own food

Green plants use energy from the sun to make food

Producers are on the bottom of the food chain

ConsumersConsumers

Consumers hunt, gather, and store food because they cannot make their own.

Three Types of Three Types of ConsumersConsumers

Herbivores

Carnivores

Omnivores

HerbivoresHerbivores

Animals who eat plants such as:–grasshoppers–rabbits–squirrels–deer–pandas

CarnivoresCarnivores

Animals who only eat other animals such as:–tigers– lions–hawks–wolves–cougars

Omnivores eat both plants and meat

–They can be EITHER primary or secondary consumers.

Predator & PreyPredator & Prey

Predator- An animal that captures and eats other animals

Prey- The animal that is captured and eaten

DecomposersDecomposers

Microorganisms that are able to break down large molecules into smaller parts

Decomposers return the nutrients that are in a living thing to the soil

The last links in the chain are the decomposers. (They break things down) Like bacteria, mold, fungi, mushrooms

•If you die, they eat you. •If you poop, they eat that.

•If you lose a leaf, they eat it.

–Whenever something that was alive dies, the decomposers get it.

The The DecomposersDecomposers

–Scavengers–=They eat the remains of dead organisms left by the consumers

–- vultures, coyotes, hyenas

Let’s LookLet’s Lookat aat aFood Food ChainChainA food chain

is a simplified way to look at the energy that passes from producers to consumers.

•Tertiary consumers (3rd order) – Eat the primary and secondary

consumers (CARNIVORES) ex: wolf eats cat and squirrel

•Secondary consumers (2nd Order)–Eat the primary consumers (CARNIVORES) example: cat eats squirrel

•Primary consumers (1st Order)–Worms, insects, squirrels, mice: all eat plants (HERBIVORES) ex: squirrel eats acorns

Types of Food ChainsTypes of Food Chains

Aquatic- Water-related food chains with sea/water plants and animals

Terrestrial- Land-related food chains with land plants and animals

What is a Food Web?What is a Food Web?A more realistic way of looking at the relationship of plants and animals in an environment

Several food chains linked together

A predator from one food chain may be linked to the prey of another food chain

Food WebsFood Webs

How many food chains can you make from this food web?

Aquatic Food WebAquatic Food Web

Terrestrial Food WebTerrestrial Food Web

Let’s Review!Let’s Review!

Summarize how energy derived from the sun is used by plants to produce sugars (photosynthesis) and is transferred within a food chain or food web (terrestrial) from producers to consumers to decomposers. Use at least 5 vocab words.

Summarize how energy derived from the sun is used by plants to produce sugars (photosynthesis) and is transferred within a food chain or food web (aquatic) from producers to consumers to decomposers. Use at least 5 vocab words.