Roles, Food Chains, Food Webs

Lesson 3

Roles of

Organisms

in Ecosystems

Roles of Organisms in Ecosystems

PRODUCERS

CONSUMERS

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1) PRODUCERS : Roles of Organisms in Ecosystems

• a producer in an ecosystem is an organism that makes its own food from non-living materials
• plants harness the energy of the sun through photosynthesis
• using the sun’s energy, they convert carbon dioxide from the air and water into energy they can use and oxygen, which they release to the air

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IN

OUT

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2) CONSUMERS : Roles of Organisms in Ecosystems

• a consumer is an organism that eats other living things for energy

are organisms that eat only plants

Herbivores

organisms that eat only other animals

Carnivores

organisms that eat both plants and animals

Omnivores

organisms that eats animals that are already dead

Scavengers

organisms that break down dead organisms or waste into simpler substances

Decomposers and Detrivores

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Roles of Organisms in Ecosystems

Fungus

Decomposer

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Food Chains�& Food Webs

Food Chains & Food Webs

• energy moves through ecosystems:
• from the producers
• up through the omnivores
• then to the carnivores

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FOOD CHAINS

• a food chain is a sequence that shows how energy and nutrients are transferred from one organism to another

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FOOD WEBS

• a food web is a model that shows how the food chains in an ecosystem are interconnected

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GIZMOS

What would happen if a link in the chain goes missing?

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GIZMOS

What would happen if a link in the chain goes missing?

X

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