Ecosystems Answer Key
Investigate how organisms interact with each other and their environment in a balanced ecosystem.
Prior Knowledge Questions
Q1.What is an ecosystem?
An ecosystem is a community of living organisms interacting with each other and their non-living environment.
Q2.What is the difference between a producer and a consumer?
Producers make their own food through photosynthesis; consumers eat other organisms for energy.
Q3.What is a food chain?
A food chain shows the transfer of energy from one organism to another in a sequence.
Activity A – Food Webs
Q1.What happens to a food web if one species is removed?
Removing one species can cause a cascade effect — populations of prey may increase and predators may decrease, disrupting the balance.
Q2.What percentage of energy is transferred from one trophic level to the next?
Only about 10% of energy is transferred from one trophic level to the next; the rest is lost as heat.
Related Gizmos
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