Quick Bite: Fill in the Food Web

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15-minute clock Quick Bite: Fill in the Food Web

 

Take a look at the figure below which shows various organisms that you might find in an Arctic marine food web. You can click on the figure for a larger printable version. Can you draw arrows between organisms showing who eats who in this food web? Below are descriptions of the numbered organisms (hint: the numbers are random and do not indicate an order in the food web):

 

Arctic Marine Ecosystem

1. Fish that might live in the Arctic Ocean, such as polar cod

2. Small animals that live on the seafloor, such as isopods, or small marine invertebrates

3. Bowhead (baleen) whale

4. Ice algae

5. Polar bear

6. Algae in the water

7. Copepods, or small crustaceans (animals) in the water

8. Seal

9. Heavier algae that sink to the seafloor

 

Challenge Questions:

  • What do you think would happen to ice algae if the Arctic was one day ice-free as a result of climate change? What about polar bears?
  • What do you think would happen to the Arctic marine food web shown in the figure above if the ice algae population decreased or went away completely? 
  • What do you think would happen to the Arctic marine food web shown in the figure above if the polar bear population were to decrease or disappear? What about if killer whales were introduced to this food web?

 

Find out who eats who in the Arctic marine food web shown in the figure above!

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