How climate change is upending the arctic food web pacific. Producers in the arctic are mostly small shrubs and lichen, like arctic willow, caribou moss, and labrador tea. The creatures most at risk from a warming planet are those that permanently live in the arctic and depend on sea ice for their survival. Pdf the food pathway in the pelagic marine ecosystem originates in phytoplankton. Pfas concentrations were compared between the char, invertebrates, water, and sediments of six lakes and biomagni. In relation to the arctic mention that global warming is having an effect on the food chain. The lessons can also be combined into a polar challenge day. Food webs a web food is made up of interconnected food chains.
Distribute copies of the arctic food web activity sheet to students. Question 3 an arctic food web includes the following organisms. As the arctic heats up, whats in store for its food webs. The species that comprise the base of the marine food web and create important seafloor habitat include phytoplankton, zooplankton, sponges, hard corals, soft corals and sea pens.
Have them use any resource materials available to complete the activity. But, as in food chains, loss or damage to a single strand in the food web impacts the entire system. Food web editable spider diagram template on creately. These animals are thriving and they offer an excellent chance to continue establishing herds in other parts of the arctic. Ask students if they can create a food web that begins with humans. The increase of freshwater to the bering sea is also caused by inflowfrom rivers such as the yukon river.
From an applied perspective, our description of an arctic web suggests new avenues for understanding how arctic food webs are built and function and of how they respond to current climate change. Some of the consumers in the food webs are krill, fish, birds, reindeer, and seals. There are millions and millions of krill each spring when the ice melts. While poorly studied to date, arctic food webs are commonly assumed to be simple in structure, with few links per species. This includes forests spreading northward, displacing the essential habitat for tundra animals like muskoxen and caribou. Print and fill out the arctic food web trophic level data sheet pdf below. Simple models called food chains depict one possible path along which energy moves through an ecosystemas. There is one food chain, one word art sign and one background scene for each habitat. A network analysis finds that these fishes, with their generalist diets, add links to the existing food web. Using the class brainstorm and the chart below as a guide, create a food web on the board. A green plant is usually found at the bottom of a food chain. The structure and function of the marine food web strongly regulate the cycling of organic matter derived from primary production by phytoplankton and ice algae in arctic shelf seas.
These krill are near the bottom of the antarctic food web. If you come across a polar bear during your arctic cruise youll be looking at the worlds largest species of bear and the largest land predator. Arctic polar region food web activity exploring nature. Arctic ecosystems especially vulnerable to contami nants. Designed for the arctic gates of the arctic national park. Arctic tundra ecosystem food web diagram landing ecosystems. In this lesson, well go over what a food web is and what type of organisms live in the arctic ocean. The organisms on the very bottom are the producers who convert sunlight into usable energy through photosynthesis. Food web scenario arc c the following paragraph describes a food web. Designed for the arctic gates of the arctic national. The completed diagram reveals how energy flows through an antarctic ecosystem and the relationships between predators. Temporal and spatial trends in marine carbon isotopes in the.
In this paper we compare systemlevel characteristics that make the bering and. The polar bear is at the top of the arctic food chain. A food web links all the food chains in an ecosystem. Investigating the potential impacts of ocean warming on the norwegian and barents seas ecosystem using a timedynamic food web model. Your class can learn more about the plants and animals of the arctic ecosystem by reading arctic summer by downs matthews 1993. Creately diagrams can be exported and added to word, ppt powerpoint, excel, visio or any other document. Copepods are eaten by arc c char, amphipods, humpback whales, and arc c cod. Climate change alters the structure of arctic marine food. A food chain goes up in trophic levels depending on what the specific organism consumes. Exposing the structure of an arctic food web article pdf available in ecology and evolution 517. An arctic food web includes the following organisms. Fluorinated organic compounds in an eastern arctic marine. Food chain worksheet pdf 29 fresh food chain worksheet food chains and food webs worksheets careless. In the arctic, there are several food chains that crisscross to make a food web, starting with the sun, then producers like phytoplankton in the sea and grasses and lichens on land.
Environmental fac tors that influence arctic marine ecosystems and make them. Jul 20, 2019 these larger mammals typically feed on smaller animals such as lemmings, voles, seal pups, fish, and birds. Help students analyze the flow of matter and energy through trophic levels by constructing various arctic food web. Study area our target region was the intensively studied area of the higharctic zackenberg valley 74300n2w within the northeast greenland national park for description, et al. A food web is a system of interlocking food chains, or, a system of interlocking hierarchical sets of organisms that are dependent on each other for food. Both copepods and humpback whales ac vely feed on phytoplankton. Arctic food web labelled and coloured to show the number of degrees of separation of the animals from phytoplankton.
The green crab, for example, is a consumer as well as a decomposer. Arctic food web free lessons teacher created resources. Note the different species and where they fit into the food web trophic levels decribed above. In the arctic, food chains have the potential to be drastically affected by climate change. Polar bears are the top of the arctic s landbased food chain. Food chains a food chain is a series of steps in which organisms transfer energy by eating and being eaten. As permafrost and glaciers melt, the freshwater is discharged into the oceans. Arctic animal food web activities by holmquists homeroom. Polar bears eat the arctic seal and the atlantic salmon and has no predator thus for making it the top of its food web. This is a collection of 14 food chains in different habitats.
A food webyou can edit this template and create your own diagram. Food chain worksheet pdf 29 fresh food chain worksheet food chains and food webs worksheets careless this is a great food web activity that allows students to assign the various animals to their role in the food web. Students create food webs for animals in the arctic. Muskox and the melting arctic there are perhaps as many as,000 muskoxen in the world today, mostly in canada, with smaller populations in greenland, alaska, russia and norway. The plant life would then become an invasive species. Now study the arctic food web illustration below online or by printing out the high resolution pdf. A producer also known as the 1rst order consumer is the first trophic level, it makes its own food from photosynthesis.
In the food chain above plankton is our producer because he is an organism that makes his own food and lives in the arctic ocean. The only predator for the polar bear is man not shown on this ecosystem chart. Polartrec teacher andrea skloss lesson was inspired by her chukchi sea ecosystem study aboard the uscgc healy. Wander through the classroom giving feedback to student groups. Scientists sometimes describe this dependence using a food chain or a food web. While polar bears rule the ice, its the whales that sit at the top of the arctic s marine food web. This interdependence within a food chain helps to maintain the balance of plant and animal populations within a ecosystem. Due the resulting limited food supply, the expected lower trophic complexity in arctic waters. A food web is different individual food chains that all from the same ecosystem connected together to show the travel of energy through an ecosystem. The plankton, algae, and mosses are eaten by small animals called krill. Food web the network of complex interactions formed by the feeding relationships among the various organisms in the ecosystem. Themes include arctic food webs, training like an explorer, expedition food, insulation and clothing, the impacts of melting ice and conducting a press conference.
Ask students to brainstorm plants and animals that reside in the arctic coastal ecosystem. Discuss what we are dependant on in order to survive. Arctic tundra food web activity food web, science curriculum. As sea ice melts in the arctic, multiple studies have documented the ices importance as a hunting platform for polar bears to snag. A coastal arctic food web arctic climate modeling program. This is a map of canadas arctic seabed landscape based on data from the general bathymetric chart of the oceans gebco. Temporal and spatial trends in marine carbon isotopes in the arctic ocean and implications for food web studies. This is a good basis for students to build on when learning about the different parts of a food web. Very closely related group that can reproduce among themselves. Bacteria that live in detrital sediments create and cycle nutrients and biominerals. Primary productivity in the arctic has increased 30% over the last 10 years, indicating significant shifts in the base of the food web. For example, in a marsh ecosystem, grasses produce food directly from sunlight, grasshoppers feed on marsh grasses, and shrews eat grasshoppers. Most communities include various populations of producer organisms which are eaten by any number of consumer populations. Look into the effects global warming is having on arctic food chains and what the children can do to stop global warming.
Desert biome create a food chain medium predators tertiary consumers carnivores omnivores. To reinforce and extend the concept of interdependence and food chains, the children could use the internet to find out about food webs. The arctic is home to the polar bear, caribou, musk oxen, walrus, the beluga and bowhead whales. A change in the size of one population in a food chain will affect other populations. Resilience as the arctic heats up, whats in store for its food webs. There are also more immediate concerns, especially about winter thaws and rains followed by freezing temperatures that create a thick crust on the snow. A food web you can edit this template and create your own diagram. Plants and animals of the arctic 5 national wildlife federation. The food chain activity is a cut and paste activity that will have students create 3 part food chains based on their food web. These form an important food supply for larger zooplankton species, which in turn feed birds, fish and some mammals. Pdf trophic relationships in the pelagic, arctic food web. Players must position the names of producers and consumers in the correct places in a diagram.
There is an abundance of species living in the area that are threatened by humanity. Gaps in current knowledge as sea ice cover changes and more light is available for longer periods of time, the impact of increased phytoplankton and a second fall bloom on arctic food webs is not well understood. Desert biome create a food chain national park service. Animals rely on plants as well as other animals for energy. The structure of all empirical food webs was significantly p food web is a system of interlocking food chains, or, a system of interlocking hierarchical sets of organisms that are dependent on each other for food. In an ecosystem, plants and animals all rely on each other to live. The population of hawks would stay the stay the same. However, polar bears are not too fussy when it comes to eating and will take advantage of other available prey when presented with the opportunity. An eastern arctic marine food web was analyzed for perfluorooctanesulfonate pfos, c 8 f 17 so 3, perfluorooctanoate pfoa, c 7 f 15 coo, perfluorooctane sulfonamide pfosa, c 8 f 17 so 2 nh 2, and nethylperfluorooctane sulfonamide netpfosa, c 8 f 17 so 2 nhch 2 ch 3 to examine the extent of bioaccumulation. Climate change is having a rapid impact on the arctic food web on land and on the ice. Using gis and web gis to visualize the canadian arctic food. Then the pica, ox,lemming, and the carbue would become close to extinct.
Aquatic food webs national oceanic and atmospheric. In the arc c ocean, photosynthe c pro sts known as phytoplankton form the base of a food web. There are 17 different whales species including dolphins and porpoises that can be found swimming in arctic waters. A remote norwegian fjord has shown resilienceup to a point. Make a list with the class of the living things we as humans depend on. This is a quiz called arctic food web and was created by member geographonic.
Print and fill out the arctic food web trophic level data sheet pdf below you can also use these two food web graphic organizers 1. When this happens, their food is locked under the icy crust. Use the food web that you created to answer the questions below in full sentences. Tiny animals, including crustaceans, feed on phytoplankton. Food webs describe who eats whom in an ecological community.
How to model climate change in an arctic food web oceanbites. Thus, our findings call for similar explorations of link structure across multiple guilds in both arctic and other webs. We would like to show you a description here but the site wont allow us. A food web or food cycle is the natural interconnection of food chains and a graphical. Organisms at higher trophic levels feed on those at lower levels. Food chain worksheet pdf 29 fresh food chain worksheet food chains and food webs worksheets careless this is a great.
The species most at risk include polar bear, seals, walrus and the ivory gull. Tell them to keep reading the cards and adding more organisms on to their paper. As you can see by the chart above, if the polar bear is taken out of the food web the arctic fox would thrive. Its most common prey is the ringed seal and the bearded seal.
A food web links all the food chains in an ecosystem white sands national monument national park service u. Plants rely on the soil, water, and the sun for energy. The plant uses energy from the sun to carry on a process called photosynthesis. Feb 12, 2018 scientists have pinpointed how crucial the microscopic algae that grow under and around sea ice are to the survival of polar bears, underscoring the ways in which climate change is upending the regions food web. Whales are the largest animals ever to have lived, larger even than the largest dinosaurs. Trophic relationships in the pelagic, arctic food web. Alternatively, have students create a food web for local species or a species found on their schoolyard. Using some of the organisms from questions 1, create a food web on the back of this paper. This lesson is on the food web of the arctic ocean. Consumers are organisms that cannot harness energy directly from the physical environment. We compared food webs from 25 subregions in the barents sea and. If a consumer eats more than one type of organism, there should be an arrow to each organism it consumes. Discuss with students the fact that living things need food in order to survive.
Phytoplankton and algae form the bases of aquatic food webs. There is a large difference in size between male and female polar bears with the male weighing anything from 350 to 800 kilograms. Perhaps one of the most famous arctic mammals is the polar bear, whose range lies primarily within the arctic circle. A sun, rain clouds and arrows are included in this bundle. A food chain shows how living things need each other for food. Use pdf export for high quality prints and svg export for large sharp images or embed your diagrams anywhere with the creately viewer.
Gracie ankcorn leopard seal harp seal 22,220 kcals polar bear krill snowy owl caribou cotton grass phytoplankton arctic cod arctic fox arctic hare arctic wolf arctic willow arctic azalea orca polar bear caribou moss lichen lemmings apex predator key. The modularity analysis divided the boreal food web into four distinct modules, the arctic food web into five and the arctic ii food web into four figure 1. Arctic animals and climates for children freeschool duration. Oct 26, 2019 some of this atlantification could help, as highly predated species flood into the arctic and help to maintain the higher levels of predators in the arctic food web. Scientists have long recognized that climate change is responsible for temperature and loss of sea ice in the arctic. Students can then create a predatorprey minidrama, and present their creation to the class. Build a food web a complex model that shows how various food chains in an ecosystem are connectedusing this interactive game adapted from the bigelow laboratory for ocean sciences. Made of interconnected food chains, food webs help us understand how changes to ecosystems say, removing a top predator or adding nutrients affect many different species, both directly and indirectly. In this activity you will create a series of food chains connecting the different creatures that live in the arctic. How food webs are structured has major implications for their stability and dynamics. Below is a list of who eats who the arctic seal is eaten by the polar bear and eats the atlantic salmon. Antarctica food chains and food webs a simple antarctic food chain is the secret to the success of the baleen whales keep the chain short and transfer as much energy as possible as efficiently as possible. Acmp 20062008 uaf geophysical institute b3 a coastal arctic food web teachers note. Plants make produce their own food using water, sunlight and carbon dioxide.
842 16 1623 265 1082 231 344 1066 1068 1009 1496 1050 109 498 1648 1408 240 1456 365 1338 959 351 278 1492 1226 417 137 1489 1058 1391 114 141 765