Life Science

I. Ecosystems & Food Chains from Water to Land

w/ Biotic & Abiotic Lab

II. Soil Profiles w/ Leaf Litter Lab

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Life Science Unit

Ecosystem

• An ecosystem is comprised of the living and nonliving components interacting with one another.

• Abiotic – non-living EX: soil moisture, pH, DO, nitrate, phosphate, amount of sunlight

• Biotic- living EX: centipedes, millipedes, bass, pickerel weed

Ecosystems: abiotic & biotic factors

Ecosystems are Interconnected

• Notes here: (talk about deciduous forest ecosystem, riparian zone ecosystem, fw ecosystem & how they are interconnected)

Coe Lake Ecosystem– Temperate Deciduous

• 4 distinct seasons (spring, summer, autumn, winter)-remember from Day & Night Lesson?

• Plants – leaves change color in autumn & are dropped in winter. EX: red oak, white oak, sugar maple, sycamore, sassafras, red bud, black cherry, locust, river birch, american elm

• Animals – many hibernate during winter EX: american toad, ground squirrel-chipmunk, arboreal squirrel-gray squirrel, opossum, raccoon, cardinal,

What is a food chain?

• A food chain shows how each living thing gets its food.

• Some animals eat plants (herbivores) • Some animals eat other animals (carnivores). • Each link in this chain is food for the next link. • A food chain always starts with plant life and

ends with an animal.

Energy Moves Through Food Chains

The circle above represents the producer. All of the stored energy in the body of the producer organism is eaten by the primary consumer.

The circle above represents the primary consumer. A small portion of the producer's original energy is stored in the primary consumer.

The circle above represents the secondary consumer. Only a very small fraction (shown in green) of the producer's original energy is stored by the secondary consumer. This energy is taken into the body of the tertiary consumer.

• As the energy is passed along the food chain much of it is either used or lost. Therefore there is a limit to the number of organisms in a food chain. The top carnivore is usually the third or fourth consumer.

• The pyramid below is a way of showing how the numbers of organisms decrease along the food chain, finishing with the top carnivore at the apex.

A = plankton, B = shrimp, C = fish, D = seagull

Sand Demonstration

Energy Transfer Video Clip

Microscopic Life is Really Important in Food Chains

• Life (algae, protists,bacteria) you can not see

• Need microscope to see

• EX: Daphnia, Copepods, Paramecium, Euglena, Diatoms, bacteria

ID Parts of A Typical Food Chain at Coe Lake

• Notes Here:

What is a food web?

• Most animals are part of more than one food chain and eat more than one kind of food in order to meet their food and energy requirements.

• This is a food web!

Aquatic Life Zones at Coe Lake• Littoral

• Limnetic

• Profundal

• Benthic

Riparian Zone Habitat• areas that surround water

bodies in the watershed and are composed of moist to saturated soils, water-loving plant species

Poor Riparian Zone at Coe Lake

• Notes Here:

Poor Riparian Zone AlongLake Erie Shoreline

• Notes:

Coe Lake Biotic/Abiotic Lab

• Hand out lab procedures and review.

• Soil Component: soil will be tested for pH, temperature, nitrogen, potassium, phosphorus, moisture

• Water Component: water will be tested for pH, temperature, DO, electrical conductivity, nitrate, phosphate, fecal coliform

Soil Profile

• Notes Here:

Leaf Litter OrganismsFood Web

Analysis of A Local Ecosystem:Disturbed & Undisturbed

• Hand out laboratory investigation and review procedures

Trees Trees Trees

More Plants

• Serviceberry

• Tupelo Tree

Animals at Coe Lake

Prairie Habitat

• Living birdfeeder• Deep roots, hold soil

>reduce soil pollution/run-off > improve water quality > retain moisture in ground

• Provides habitat & food

Habitat Quality

• The overall quality of habitat has been degraded due to human habitat expansion= habitat degradation.

Degradation = Invasives

Parts of A Microscope

Coe Lake Eco-Cottage =Human Habitat