7

Environmental
Science
Quarter 1 – Module 4:
Pathway Of Materials In The Environment

"Designed by pch.vector / Freepik"

Environmental Science– Grade 7
Self-Learning Modules
First Edition, 2020

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Published by the Department of Education – Regional Office VIII

Regional Director: Ramir B. Uytico EdD, CESO IV
Assistant Regional Director: Arnulfo M. Balane, CESO V

Development Team of the Module

Writer: KATHERINE A. LOBINA AND SARAH MELITA BARCELONA
Language Editors:
Content Editor: DULCE AMOR A. BEATO
Illustrators: Name
Layout Artist: Name
Management Team:
Rosemarie M. Guino EdD, OIC – Chief, CLMD
Ryan R. Tiu EdD, EPS, CLMD – Science
Joy B. Bihag, EPS, CLMD – LRMS
Ma. Luz I. Orbe, Chief, CID
RHEA N. COLES, EPS – Science, Eastern Samar Division
AURORA AMBOY, EPS – Science, Borongan City Division
Cecilia A. Arga, EPS – LRMS

Printed in the Philippines by ________________________

Department of Education – Regional Office VIII

Office Address: Government Center, Candahug, Palo, Leyte

Telefax: 053 - 3233156

E-mail Address: region8@deped.gov
At the end of this module you will also find:
References This is a list of all sources used in
developing this module.

The following are some reminders in using this module:

1. Use the module with care. Do not put unnecessary mark/s on any part of
the module. Use a separate sheet of paper in answering the
exercises.
2. Read the instruction carefully before doing each task.
3. Observe honesty and integrity in doing the tasks and checking your
answers.
4. Finish the task at hand before proceeding to the next.
5. Return this module to your teacher/facilitator once you are through with it.
If you encounter any difficulty in answering the tasks in this module, do not
hesitate to consult your teacher or facilitator. Always bear in mind that you
are not alone.

We hope that through this material, you will experience meaningful learning
and gain deep understanding of the relevant competencies. You can do it!

PAGE \* MERGEFORMAT ii
 Explore

Introduction:

An ecosystem is a community of organisms and their abiotic (non-living)

environment. Ecosystems can be small, such as the tide pools found near the
rocky shores of many oceans, or large, such as those found in the tropical
rainforest, such as the Mindoro rainforest.
Interactions between organisms and the environment occurs in order to
meet their basic needs and to survive. One of these interactions is the transfer of
energy in the ecosystem. Plants, animals and microorganisms must obtain
energy to enable them to move, grow, repair and even reproduce.

This module will help you learn how energy and materials in the
ecosystem is transferred from one organism to another.

After going through this module, you are expected to:

Trace the pathway of materials and that of energy in the environment.
(MELC Quarter 1, Week 6-7)
1. Identify the type of organisms involved in a food chain and food web.
2. Describe what happens to the energy as it transfers from one trophic level
to another.
3. Explain the importance of energy transfer in an ecosystem.

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Learn

Activity I: WHERE DO I BELONG?

Directions: Classify the organisms as PRODUCER or CONSUMER. Make a
table of your classification similar to the one below.
Producer Consumer

corn worm eagle chicken owl

grasshopper algae leech butterfly shark
deer kangaroo snake maya ant
kangkong bermuda grass carabao grass mango tree oak

ENERGY SOURCE IN AN ECOSYSTEM

The sun supports most of the earth’s ecosystems. Plants create chemical
energy from abiotic factors that include all the physical make-up of the
ecosystem.

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https://www.shutterstock.com/search/pond+ecosystem

Plants, animals and microorganisms must obtain energy to enable them to

survive.
Plants are capable of converting energy from the sun into chemical energy
in the form of glucose (food). The process is called photosynthesis. It uses
water, carbon dioxide and sunlight – the abiotic factors within the ecosystem.

Organisms that include the plants and some microorganisms are

considered as producers. Producers are also known as autotrophs, or “self-
feeders.” They are able to make compounds containing carbon and they do not
need to “eat” food.

Most plants make much more food each day than they need. Excess
glucose is converted into starch by the plants and is stored either in the roots,
stem, leaves, tubers, seeds or in fruits.

While humans and animals are not capable of making their own food, they are
dependent on the organic matter made by photosynthetic organisms. Animals
and humans must eat either plants or other animals to obtain energy.

Organisms that feed on other organisms are called consumers or

heterotrophs. Those that get their energy by eating plants only are called first-
order-consumers or herbivores.

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 https://plantcaretoday.com/caterpillar-control.html https://www.freepik.com/free-photo/close-
up- white-goat-eating-grass

Some energy in the first order consumer is not used by the consumer
itself. This energy is made available to another level of consumer. A consumer
that eats the plant-eaters for energy is called a second- order- consumer.
Examples of this are shown in the illustration below:

http://vireo.ansp.org/bird_academy/worm-eating%20birds.php

https://www.dreamstime.com/frog-try-to-eat-grasshopper-illustration-image128396702

The sequence can extend because of the very diverse interactions found
between and among organisms.

However, when an organism dies, small organisms such as fungi, bacteria

and protozoans break down the complex organic molecules in its body for food.
These heterotrophs are called decomposers. Decomposers are important parts
of every ecosystem. They release the elements stored up in dead tissues in the
environment, where they can be re-used.
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 A part of this energy is stored and may be passed on to another consumer.
A consumer that eats a second-order-consumer is called the third-order-
consumer.

https://www.pxfuel.com/en/search?q=fish-eating+birds https://fishkeepingforever.com/

With this, one can say that the second-order-consumer gets only a fraction
of energy (a lesser amount) from the first-order-consumer that it fed upon. The
third-order consumer gets only a fraction of energy from the second-order
consumer, until it reaches the end-consumer.

The sequence can keep extending because of the very diverse interactions
found between and among organisms. When organisms die, fungi, bacteria and
protozoans consume them as food, and in the process acts to break them down
to release the elements stored up in dead tissues of the decaying organisms be
re-used in another food chain in another part of the ecosystem.

These heterotrophs are called decomposers.

The transfer of energy from the producer, then from one consumer to the next,
can be sequenced. The sequence of energy transfer among organisms to get
energy and nutrients is called a food chain.

https://www.shutterstock.com/search/food+chain

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 A food chain is described as the set of organisms that pass energy from
one level to the next. Energy is passed from organisms at one energy level to
organisms in the next energy level, such that energy decreases as it transfers
from one organism to another.

TROPHIC LEVELS

https://www.britannica.com/science/trophic-pyramid

https://maggiesscienceconnection.weebly.com/habitats-food-chains--webs-trophic-pyramid.html

A trophic level consists of each step in a food chain. In the figure, grass
make up the first trophic level, and the second trophic level contains the insects

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that feed on the grass. And so on. The final trophic level contains the hawk/
eagle that eat the snake.

Energy flows through an ecosystem in only one direction. Energy is passed

from organisms at one trophic level or energy level to organisms in the next
trophic level. Most of the energy at a trophic level – about 90% -is used up at
each trophic level to meet the organism’s need for growth, locomotion, heating
themselves, and reproduction. So animals at the second trophic level have only
about 10% as much energy available to them as organisms do at the first trophic
level. Animals at the third level have only 10% as much available to them as
(than?) those at the second level.
Eventually, more interactions come into play, involving more feeding
relationships in the ecosystem. This is called a food web.

https://k8schoollessons.com/food-chains-food-webs/

Energy must be transferred through organisms that make up an

ecosystem so as to support the requirements of life at each trophic level. While
energy cannot be created from nothing, so it must be transferred through the
ecosystem in an endless sequence of interactions, either through a food chain or
a food web involving producers and consumers.

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 Engage

Activity 2: WHICH IS WHICH?

A. DIRECTION: Identify as to which trophic level each of the underlined

organism belong.

1. frog eating an insect ________________________________

2. eagle eating a rat ________________________________
3. cat eating a mice ________________________________
4. rat eating a corn ________________________________
5. worm eating a leaf ________________________________

B. From the underlined organisms above, identify as to what order

consumer they are in a food chain.
1. frog____________________
2. eagle ___________________
3. cat _____________________
4. rat _____________________
5. worm __________________

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 Apply

From your backyard, observe your surroundings and note the organisms that
interact with each other. Describe these interactions by noting the producer/s,
consumer/s, order of consumer and the trophic level they belong.
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________

Assess

A.Multiple Choice Test: Directions: Answer the following questions by writing

the letter of the correct answer on a separate sheet of paper.
1.Which of the organisms below, gets the least amount of energy in the
ecosystem?
a. corn b. worm c. rat d. decomposers
2. Which one belongs to the first trophic level?
a. maya bird b. worm c. snake d. corn
3. ___________ is the main source of energy in the ecosystem.
a. Water b. Sunlight c. Food d. Snake
4. Which of the following organisms is in the third trophic level of a food chain?
a. bird b. worm c. snake d. petchay
5. Which organism returns the nutrients back to the soil?
a. rose b. eagle c. ant d. fungi
6. Which of the following plays a very important role in the photosynthetic
process?
a. sunlight b. dried leaf c. soil d. flower

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7. How important are the decomposers in the ecosystem? They_______________
a. act as agents in photosynthesis
b. return the nutrients back to the soil
c. carry diseases
d. help the plants to grow mature
8. Which one is NOT an autotroph?
a. banana b. corn c. apple d. worm
9. Why is the sun considered as the ultimate energy source in the ecosystem?
With the aid of sunlight______________
a. plants are able to manufacture food.
b. plants are able to manufacture food.
c. animals are able to breath
d. plants are able to survive.
10. How will you distinguish a producer from a consumer?
a. Producers manufacture food for the consumers
b. Consumers manufacture food for the producers
c. Consumers consume food, so as the producers
d. Consumers can make their own food without the help of producers

A. Express the best of your ideas on the following questions.

Write your answers on a separate sheet of paper.

1.Describe what happens to the energy as it is transferred from one organism to

another organism. (2points)

2. Differentiate producers from consumers. (1 Point)

3. Explain the importance of energy transfer. (2 points)

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 Reflect

Write your thoughts about the things that you learned on this topic by
completing the format below:

I learned that ….
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
I have a difficulty in ….
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
I realized that….
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________

Answer Key
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 APPLY

Assessment (answer may vary) Engage

1. d Activity 2
2. d
3. b A. 1.second trophic level
4. c 2.third trophic level
5. d 3. third trophic level
6. a 4. second trophic level
7. b 5. first trophic level
8. d B.
9. a (Varied answer)
10. a

11-15 (Answers may

vary)

Learn

PRODUCERS:
corn
mango tree
carabao grass
bermuda
kangkong
algae

CONSUMERS:
worm
eagle
leech
butterfly
deer
kangaroo
snake
maya
ant
grasshopper

References:

About Our Earth, Panda. (2008) Ecological Interactions. Teacher Resources.

https://www.panda.org/
Nature International Weekly Journal of Science. (2010) Ecological Interactions
Retrieved from: https://www.nature.com./nature/index.html

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Google sites:
http://www.nature.com/nature/index.html
https://k8schoollessons.com/food-chains-food-webs/
https://maggiesscienceconnection.weebly.com/habitats-food-chains--webs-
trophic-pyramid.html

https://www.britannica.com/science/trophic-pyramid

https://www.dreamstime.com/frog-try-to-eat-grasshopper-illustration-
image128396702

https://www.pxfuel.com/en/search?q=fish-eating+birds

https://fishkeepingforever.com/

https://plantcaretoday.com/caterpillar-control.html

https://www.freepik.com/free-photo/close-up- white-goat-eating-grass

https://www.shutterstock.com/search/pond+ecosystem

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