ecosystem yr8

ecosystem

1. what is an ecosystem?

   • an ecosystem is a unit made up of two parts
     • living things (plants, animals, bacteria).
     • non-living surroundings or environment - air, water, soil and the climate (how warm or wet it is).

2. how big is an ecosystem?

   • an ecosystem is any size you study e.g.
     • a pond
       • a meadow
       • a forest
       • the Sahara desert
       • the whole earth
   • each is a unit made up of living things and a non-living environment.

3. what is in the food chain?

   • no.1 plants - using sunlight, carbon dioxide from the air, and water and nutrients from the soil, a plant can produce everything it needs for itself. So plants are called producers.
     • no.2 a herbivore - e.g. a caterpillar eats a plants leaves.
       • no.3 a insectivore - e.g. a wood mouse eats a caterpillar.
         • no.4 a carnivore - e.g. a fox eats the wood mouse.
           • no.5 the animal dies.
             • no.6 bacteria, insects, earth worms and fungi eat away at the dead carcass.
               • the dead animals give the soil nutrients so plants can grow.

4. the 4 ecosystems

   • 1. hot desert
     • 2. Savanna
     • 3. tropical rain forest
       • between tropics of cancer and capricorn
     • 4. deciduous forest