Year 7 Biology Topic Environment and Feeding Relationships

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KS3 Biology

7C Feeding Relationships



Contents

Habitats

Adaptations

Summary activities

Feeding types

Food chains

Food webs


What makes a habitat?

A habitat has all of the things that an organism needs to survive such as the right amount of light, oxygen and water.

What is a habitat?

The place where an organism lives is called its habitat.

Habitats

How would you describe your habitat?


How are these habitats similar and how are they different?

Different types of habitats


Which land habitat?


Which water habitat?



Contents

Habitats

Adaptations

Summary activities

Feeding types

Food chains

Food webs


Organisms need to have special features which help them to survive in their habitat. These special features are called adaptations.

For example, you have plenty of adaptations to survive in your habitat. Your fingers are an excellent adaptation. Without their ability to grip you would not be able to do all of that schoolwork!

Some adaptations are obvious while others are not so obvious.

Can you think of any other adaptations that you have?

What are adaptations?


These organisms are all adapted to their environments in different ways. How are they specially adapted to survive?

Adaptations in different habitats


These animals have similar habitats but different adaptations.

Adaptations in similar habitats


What are adaptations for?


As the organism is adapted to its environment you should be able to use the way it looks to answer all of these questions. Don’t forget to give your organism a name!

Scientists have discovered this strange new species on a small island off the coast of Argentina.

The scientists want you to help them describe where this animal lives (land, water or air), what it eats, how it eats, how it breathes, how it moves and last, but not least, what they should call it.

A new species…


Many things in the environment change on a daily basis. For example, the temperature and the amount of light.

Organisms adapt to the type of habitat they live in and also have to adapt to the daily changes in their habitat.

For example, many flowers open their petals during the day to catch the Sun and close them at night for protection from early morning frost.

Daily adaptations


The environment also changes on a yearly basis with the seasons. This may bring about changes in light and temperature but also in the availability of food and water.

Organisms must also find some way to adapt to these yearly changes. Organisms have come up with many different ways to achieve this.

Yearly adaptations

For example, many animals hibernate over winter to deal with food shortages.


Daily or yearly activity



Contents

Habitats

Adaptations

Summary activities

Feeding types

Food chains

Food webs


Different types of animals can be grouped in several ways. One grouping system is based on how animals feed.

Other organisms cannot make their own food. These are called consumers.

Some organisms produce their own food. These are called producers.

Feeding types

Plants produce their own food using light energy from the Sun. Some types of bacteria can also make their own food by using light or chemical reactions.


Producer or consumer?


Consumers can be grouped into different types:

Consumers

CarnivoresThese consumers eat other consumers. They eat animals.

Herbivores These consumers eat producers. This means plants and possibly bacteria.

OmnivoresThese consumers eat other consumers and producers. They eat animals and plants. Most humans are omnivores.


Feeding types



Contents

Habitats

Adaptations

Summary activities

Feeding types

Food chains

Food webs


Food chains – what eats what?

What is the food chain in this habitat?


A food chain shows what is eaten by what. Each arrow means ‘eaten by’.

What does this food chain show?

A leaf is eaten by a caterpillar, which is eaten by a bird, which is eaten by a cat.

Energy is transferred from one organism to another in the direction of the arrow,.

Food chains

leaf caterpillar bird cat


Drag the organisms into the boxes to make three food chains.

Food chains – activity


Draw your own food chains based on the following guidelines:

a) A food chain from a forest.

b) A food chain from an ocean.

c) A food chain with four organisms in it.

d) A food chain that ends with you!

Use arrows ( ) to show the transfer of energy between the organisms that you choose.

Food chains – draw your own


Read the following paragraph about who eats whom in the Antarctic and draw a food chain that shows the feeding relationships in this habitat. Don’t forget that your food chain must start with a producer!

Killer whales or orca’s range around Antarctica hunting for their food. One of the species that they eat are the Weddell Seal. Weddell seals are large mammals that stay in Antarctica all year round. One of the many things that they eat are squid. Squid are very fast hunters who often poison their prey. They feed on many different organisms including shrimp. Shrimp are small animals that live on the ocean floor. There are over 2,000 different species of shrimp all over the world. They are omnivores but phytoplankton makes up a large part of their diet.

Antarctic food chain – information


killerwhale

weddellsealsquidshrimp

phyto-plankton

Antarctic food chain – answer

Killer whales or orca’s range around Antarctica hunting for their food. One of the species that they eat are the Weddell Seal. Weddell seals are large mammals that stay in Antarctica all year round. One of the many things that they eat are squid. Squid are very fast hunters who often poison their prey. They feed on many different organisms including shrimp. Shrimp are small animals that live on the ocean floor. There are over 2,000 different species of shrimp all over the world. They are omnivores but phytoplankton makes up a large part of their diet.


Food chains and feeding types

Food chains always start with a producer.

If the producer is a plant it can be any part of the plant, such as the seeds, fruits, leaves or even dead leaves.

From looking at a food chain we can tell if an organism is a producer, a herbivore or a carnivore.

What are the feeding types of the animals in this food chain?leaf caterpillar bird cat


Food chains and feeding types – activity


Consumers eat plants or animals, or both.A food chain can be used to rank different types of consumers.

Ranking consumers

producers – make their own food;

primary consumers – eat producers;

secondary consumers – eat primary consumers;

tertiary consumers – eat secondary consumers.

humancrayfishlimpetseaweed

producerprimary

consumersecondaryconsumer

tertiaryconsumer


Ranking consumers – activity



Contents

Habitats

Adaptations

Summary activities

Feeding types

Food chains

Food webs


Most animals would get pretty fed up if they only ate one thing. Instead, they usually eat many different things and are involved in lots of different food chains.

What is a food web?

These food chains can be put together in a food web, which shows how the food chains are connected.

What would the food web look like for these food chains?

plants aphid ladybird blue tit owl

plants moth larva blue tit owl

plants moth larva spider chiffchaff owl

plants vole stoat

plants vole owl


What is a food web?

blue tit

chiffchaff

aphid

moth larva

vole

stoat

owl

spider

ladybird

plants


1.Name the producer in this food web.

2.Name two herbivores in this food web.

3.Name two species that are top carnivores.

4.How many secondary consumers are there?

5.Which food chains include a moth larva? plants

aphid

ladybird

blue tit

owl

moth larva

spider vole

chiffchaff

stoat

Using a food web


Build a food web



Contents

Habitats

Adaptations

Summary activities

Feeding types

Food chains

Food webs


Glossary

adaptation – A feature that helps an organism live in a particular place.

carnivore – An organism that only eats other animals.consumer – An organism that feeds on plants or animals.

food chain – A sequence that shows feeding relationships and the transfer of energy between organisms.

food web – Food chains that are linked to show the complex feeding relationships in a habitat.

habitat – The place where an organism lives.herbivore – An organism that only eats plants.omnivore – An organism that eats both plants and animals.producer – A plant that makes food by photosynthesis.


Anagrams


Multiple-choice quiz

Year 7 Biology Topic Environment and Feeding Relationships

Technology

availability of food

food shortages

different adaptations

food chains activity

yearly adaptations

daily adaptations

water habitat

consumers consumers