Who Is The Biggest Fish In The Sea: A Complete Resource Guide To The Food Chain

Author: Terry Newhaven

Food chains and food webs represent the delicate balance of relationships between organisms in a specific habitat or biome. All food chains first begin with organisms (such as plants) that are able to produce their own food for survival through use of sunlight or other natural substances. These organisms provide us with many things we cannot survive without including oxygen and the removal of toxic fumes from our air. Without this beginning step of the food cycle, no other organisms could survive.

Food Chain Overview

Food chains exist in every biome naturally. Every piece of the food chain provides energy to another organism which continually transfers to other organisms. This is a very delicate process that has occurred since the beginning of time with relatively little change but has only been studied and titled ‘the food cycle‘ since around the year 1880. Researchers and scientists continue to study and learn more about this natural phenomenon that is necessary for life on Earth.

Food Chain- What’s For Dinner?: A simple chart showing what a basic food chain looks like.

Food Chains- Predator & Prey: Activities to create simple food chains.

What Is A Food Chain?: What exactly is a food chain? A look inside the basics.

Chain Reaction: A fun and interactive experiment on the way food web is organized.

Biodiversity- The Food Chain: The diversity found within food chains in different biomes.

Everybody Is Somebody’s Lunch: An activity showing the importance of the food chain and food energy.

Food Chains Are Not A Necklace: A basic activity to teach how food chains function.

Food Web Stability: How do food webs and chains maintain stability?

Energy and Ecosystems- Food Chains: The way the Ecosystem effects the food chain process.

Food Supply and Food Chains: A connection between human food supply and food chains.

Every Link In The Food Chain: Every link counts and connects to the next link of a food chain.

Food Chain Gang: An activity involving cards that teaches children how little differences can cause a disturbance in a food chain.

Types of Food Chains

Food chains are classified in categories based upon the habitat of the area the chain exists. Food chains are often broken down into two main categories terrestrial and aquatic (land and water). These categories can be broken down even further into more specific areas, such as grasslands, fresh water and salt water biomes. Each organism, regardless of habitat, has a specific place in a food chain which is referred to as a ‘trophic level’. There are five trophic levels. Level one begins with primary producers (usually plants), level two is herbivores (those who consume only plants), level three is predators (those whom eat herbivores), levels four and five are at the top of the food chain and consist of carnivores (those whom eat smaller herbivores) and level five finishes with apex predators. Apex predators are the very top level, as they prey upon every other level of the food chain and have little to know natural predators themselves.

Grassland Biome Food Chain

Grassland biomes are filled with a lot of grass and often have extreme climates, very hot summers and cold snowy winters. There are many animals in the grasslands that make up the food chain. Grass, wildflowers and other plants make up the first trophic level of the grassland biome. Level two in this habitat consists of small insects that feed upon plants, such as grasshoppers. Level three is made up of slightly larger animals that prey upon insects, such as toads or frogs. Level four consists of those whom consume small animals, snakes are a common level four link in the grasslands. The top level, level five, in the grasslands is made up of the largest animals. Birds of prey are common level five predators in the grasslands, hawks being a good example of a top level.

The Grassland Biomes: All about the areas where grassland biomes exist, the animals that inhabit the grasslands and the food web.

Grassland Food Web: A diagram of a typical food web within the grassland biomes.

Concepts of the Ecosystem: An easy to understand chart showing the process of a food web in the grasslands.

Habitats and Food Chains: A source to the various areas of biomes, the basics of habitats in terrestrial and aquatic (land and water) biomes.

All About Grassland Biomes: A comprehensive guide to the weather, animals and food webs involved in every type of grassland biome.

 

Pond Biome (Fresh Water) Food Chain

Within the aquatic biome category exists a fresh water habitat, referred to as ‘the pond biome. Fresh water biomes are not limited to ponds and can include rivers, streams and lakes as well. In fresh water biomes, algae is usually the main source of level one’s trophic level. Level two may be something such as a tadpole, that will feed upon the algae. Level three is something that may feed upon tadpoles, for instance, larva of other organisms. Level four and five are usually large fish, such as heron and trout.

Fresh Water Biomes: All about fresh water (or pond biomes) and the food web that follows within the area.

World Biomes: Color coded maps of the biomes across the world, including several freshwater biomes and food chains.

Ponds & Lakes: Detailed look into life in a pond biome, including descriptions of the food chain.

Your Local Pond- A Delicate Aquatic Biome: Activities and experiments that can be done within local ponds to demonstrate the delicate balance of the biome.

Diversity of Life: A look at the basic biology of animals, plants and microbes in ponds/lakes and streams.

Ocean Biome (Salt Water) Food Chain

The ocean biome is the largest of all biomes on Earth and makes up more than 75% of the entire world. All natural salt water sources are included within this biome. In salt water, a single celled organism known as phytoplankton is the main level of the Ocean Biome’s food chain. Phytoplankton are the smallest of all ocean plants. Zooplankton is on the second trophic level, (shrimp and jellyfish, to name a few), which means that their diets consist of ocean plants. Level three is small fish (sardines, herrings, lobsters) which eat the level two organisms. Level four and five are large predatory fish which consume all of the lower levels. Examples of level four would be octopus, sword fish and tuna while level five are the biggest predators in the ocean, whales and sharks.

The Ocean Biome: Looking inside the biome that exists within the ocean.

The Largest Biome On Earth- Ocean Biome: A peak inside the world’s largest biome on earth as well as the animals and their diets.

Marine Biome: Lists of the animals in the ocean biome, including their part within the biome.

An Aquatic Food Web: A diagram showing the food web of the oceans.

Marine Fisheries Food Webs: This website breaks down each part of the oceanic food web in great detail.

Food Web vs. Food Chain

Many people get easily confused by the terms ‘food web’ and ‘food chain’. Often times the words are used interchangeably though they are actually two different things. A food chain is the basic graph of a specific biome, such as the food chain in an ocean. A food web is a web made up of several food chains, such as the various food chains in all biomes. It can mean a big difference if these terms are used as one in the same!

Trophic Levels and Food Chains: Pictures and descriptions of the differences in trophic levels of biomes and food chains.

Trophic Structure and Food Webs: Activities that can be used to show the differences between trophic structures and food webs.

Weaving the Web- Food Web v. Food Chain: A simple guide to understanding what makes a food web different from a food chain.

The Food Web: Detailed information on ways to identify a food web from a food chain.

Food Web Game Page: A page offering games that make learning about food webs/food chains a lot of fun!

Food Chain and Food Web Interactive Activities: A large variety of interactive activities for adolescents to make food chains and food webs easy to understand.

Are There Real Differences In Water/Land Food Webs?: An informative reading about the differences between food webs and chains in a variety of biomes.

Food Webs and Food Chains: Understanding what makes a food web or food chain.

Food Chain/Food Web: An activity on food chain/food webs.

The Long and Short of A Food Chain: Information on what qualifies as a food chain.

Food Web/Food Chain Diagram: A detailed diagram showing the differences between chains and webs.

Marine Environment Food Webs/Chains: A look at the food webs and food chains in marine environments.

Food Chains & Food Webs (Background Information): Looking inside the background information of specific food webs and food chains.

Definitions of Food Chains/Food Webs: Specific definitions of the differences and similarities of food webs and food chains.

The important role the food cycle plays in life on Earth could not possibly be overrated. It is necessary for scientists to study the delicate process in order to learn what changes are made throughout history. A lot can be discovered by following something as simple as food cycle in any area of the world. It is really quite fascinating to learn so much about a topic we as humans are naturally apart of.