Food Chains Webs and Energy Pyramids

Energy Flow in Food Chains,
Food Webs, & Energy Pyramids
Mrs. Sandoval
Science Teacher
SC Indicator 74.2
Illustrate energy flow in food chains,
food webs, and energy pyramids.
Prior Knowledge
In 3rd grade you learned about simple food
chains, including the roles of producers,
consumers, and decomposers.
In 5th grade you identified the roles of
organisms as they interacted and
depended on one another through food
chains and food webs in an ecosystem.
You learned a lot in 5th grade. Lets review
what you learned.
In 5th Grade
You learned about producers and consumers
like herbivores, carnivores, and omnivores.
You learned about decomposers like
microorganisms, termites, worms, and
fungi.
You learned about the roles of predators
and prey.
You also learned about parasites and their
hosts.
Wow! You really learned a lot in 5 th grade.
Future Learning
In high school biology you will learn how to
calculate the amount of energy transferred
from one level to another in an energy
pyramid.
You will also learn the roles that organisms
play in the geochemical cycles (such as the
carbon cycle, nitrogen cycle, and water
cycle).
You will learn more about predation,
competition, and symbiotic relationships as
well.
Essential Question
What does a food chain
show us?
Essential Question
How is a food web
different from a food
chain?
Essential Question
How is a food chain or food web
related to owl pellets?
Essential Question
How does energy flow
through an ecosystem?
Essential Question
How does the amount of energy
change as it moves through an
energy pyramid?
Food Chains
Food chains use pictures or words and
arrows to show the movement of
energy through the trophic levels of
organisms.
The trophic level of an organism
indicates the position that the
organism occupies in the food chain.
It shows what it eats and what eats
it.
Producers & Consumers

The levels are numbered according to how far the
particular organism is along the chain.
Producers are at level 1. (Plants are

producers because they produce their own
food.)
Herbivores are at level 2. (consumer)
Predators are at level 3. (consumer)
And so on
Anything that cannot make its

own food must eat to survive.
It must consume its food!
It is a consumer.
The owl
eats the
snake
that ate
the frog
that ate
the
caterpilla
Note: Theres
something wrong.
What is it?
Follow the food chain

from producer to top
level consumer.
FOX EATS RABBIT

THAT ATE PLANT.
Why does this look more like a cycle

than a chain?
Lets discuss this one in detail.
Why is
the SUN
in this
picture?
In this food chain, what is the

producer?
What is the first level
consumer?
What is the second level
consumer?
Is the polar bear the 3rd level
consumer? Explain.
This picture
shows the
Trophic
Levels
Food Webs
Food webs describe the organisms
found in interconnecting food chains
using pictures or words and arrows.
In other words, food webs are a
bunch of food chains all together!
They describe the complex patterns
of energy flow in an ecosystem by
modeling who consumes whom or what.
Lets
follow
a few
food
chains
found
in this
There
are a
lot of
arrows
here,
but
theyre
easy to
ood Webs are EASY
Energy Pyramids
An energy pyramid shows the amount
of energy that moves from one
trophic level to another in a food
chain.
The most energy is available at the
producer level of the pyramid.
The availability of energy decreases
as it moves up the energy pyramid.
The most energy is at the

producer level the base
The Energy Pyramid
Who
needs
the most
energy
to
survive?
Energy
Pyramid
Awesome Web Site!

http://science-class.net/Ecology/energy_transfer.htm
Lets take a look at the

above web site relating to
ecology and energy
transfer.
Another Cool Site

http://www.harcourtschool.com/activity/food/food_menu.html
After we look at the above web site, well go on to

view the BrainPop video entitled FOOD CHAINS.
The BrainPop videos provide further enrichment of
topics discussed in class and are interesting as well
as easy to understand!
www.brainpop.com
Making a Model
Lets make a model of an energy pyramid.
The model you will construct will be simple. It will show
pictures of the producers and consumers at each level,
the names in words, and the trophic levels.
The good news is that this model really is perfect for
meeting our objectives relating to energy pyramids.
Make sure you follow all instructions for proper
completion of the model.
Acknowledgements
All pictures were obtained from various
sources on Google Images.
None of the pictures/illustrations are mine.
Credit is given to all artists/photographers
for their work.

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Energy Flow in Food Chains,

Food Webs, & Energy Pyramids

Producers & Consumers

Producers are at level 1. (Plants are

Anything that cannot make its

Follow the food chain

FOX EATS RABBIT

Why does this look more like a cycle

In this food chain, what is the

ood Webs are EASY

The most energy is at the

The Energy Pyramid

Awesome Web Site!

Lets take a look at the

Another Cool Site

After we look at the above web site, well go on to

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