year 8 biology topic ecological relationships

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KS3 Biology

8D Ecological Relationships



Contents

Classifying animals and plants

Habitats and adaptations

Summary activities

Feeding types

Food chains and populations


Animal classification


Vertebrate classification


Invertebrate classification


Which type of invertebrate?


Plant classification



Contents



Summary activities

Feeding types



Which habitat?


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?

Surviving in a habitat


Adaptations activity



Contents



Summary activities

Feeding types



Feeding types

Animals can be grouped in several ways. One way of doing this is based on how animals feed.

Consumers cannot make their own food. They must consume other organisms to get the food that they need.

Some organisms are producers. Producers make their own food.

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

Consumers can be grouped into different types:

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.



Contents



Summary activities

Feeding types



The organisms in a food chain are dependent on each other.

Changes in the number of organisms in one part of the food chain can have dramatic effects on the rest of the food chain.

Rabbit numbers would decrease because they would have less to eat and may starve or stop reproducing.

Fox numbers would also fall as there would not be as many rabbits to eat.

Changes in food chain populations

grass rabbit fox

What would happen to the number of rabbits and foxes if all the grass died out?


1. It has been a very bad year for plankton. Due to the lack of food their numbers have dropped dramatically.

Use the sliders to show how this will affect the numbers of the other members of the food chain.

Food chain populations

plankton shrimp tuna dolphin

Shrimp numbers indicator

Tuna numbers indicator

Dolphin numbers indicator


2. Dolphins are often killed by being caught in the driftnets of fisherman. More dolphins than ever have been killed in this particular year and so the number of dolphins is very low. Use the sliders to show how this will affect the numbers of the other members of the food chain.







3. Due to a mysterious disease the number of tuna has dropped dramatically.








4. Large numbers of shrimp larvae did not develop properly and because of this shrimp numbers have declined.









Contents



Summary activities

Feeding types



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.

herbivore – An organism that only eats plants.

omnivore – An organism that eats both plants and animals.

population – The number of organisms of a species living in a habitat.

producer – A plant that makes food by photosynthesis.


Anagrams


Multiple-choice quiz

year 8 biology topic ecological relationships

Technology

fox numbers

rabbit numbers

types food chains

numbers of theother

types animals

large numbers of shrimp

consumers consumers

animals feed