Food Web Center Instructions
At this center you will learn about food webs in the ecosystem where you live. In any ecosystem, all of the organisms (living things) depend on one another to live. Every living being must get energy from somewhere else, this is called an energy cycle. For example; plants get energy from photosynthesis, animals eat plants or other animals to get energy (just like you!), and fungi and bacteria digest the bodies of dead animals and plants to get their energy. Without these relationships, no organism (living thing) would be able to live for very long.
In your field research on the Gallatin River, you and your classmates collected data on the organisms living in this ecosystem. Using this data, you can create a food web of the Gallatin River that illustrates how each organism (living thing) gets its energy.
Look at the sample food web provided for you at the center. Food webs are drawn to show the connections between all of the organisms in an ecosystem. Each organism is drawn or represented by a symbol, and then lines are drawn to connect organisms that eat or are eaten by other organisms. Producers like plants, fungi and bacteria are at the bottom of the food web. Consumers, such as elk, bears, and wolves are at the top or middle of the food web. Now point out to each other the following terms we just discussed.
• Organism symbols
• Connection/relationship lines
• Consumer/Producer
Instructions:
Using the supplies provided at the center, create your own food web with your group. To do this:
1. Include all of the organisms observed during the class field trips to the Gallatin River.
2. Label each organism on your food web.
3. Connect each organism to other organisms that it has an energy relationship to. If you are unsure about how an organism should be connected to other organisms, use the guide books provided at the center to find out more about what animals eat.
4. Make your food web as detailed as possible.
• Include and label ALL organisms that you gathered from your observations on the Gallatin River.
• Include accurate connections using arrows to label the relationships.
• Colored accurately.
