Name: _________________________________________ Period: _________ Date: _____________________

Energy through an Ecosystem

Part One: In the energy pyramid below, label the name of each trophic level as either producers or consumers and as
either autotrophs or heterotrophs. If they are consumers, be sure to label them as primary, secondary, etc. To the left of the
pyramid, write in a percentage how much energy each trophic level is getting from the sun. To the right of the pyramid,
write how much energy is transferred from one trophic level to the next, don’t forget the unit.

Energy from Energy from

sun _______ level before it
________

Energy from Energy from

sun level before it
_______ __________
Energy from
Energy from level before it
sun _______ __________

Energy from Energy

sun _______ available =
10,000 kCal
Part Two: Organizing a Food Web
Below is a list of organisms from a desert biome. On a separate sheet of notebook paper, organize a food web and draw
arrows to show the direction of energy transfer between these organisms. Write the following next to each organism: 1) If
it is an autotroph or heterotroph and 2) if it is a producer or consumer (if it is a consumer, label it as a primary consumer,
secondary consumer, etc.).

Organism Desert Kangaroo Lizards Hawk Cricket Rattlesnake

Tortoise Rat
What it eats Weeds, Grass Weeds, Crickets Lizards, Weeds, Grass Lizards,
Grass Rattlesnakes, Kangaroo rats
Kangaroo rats

Part Three: Thinking Critically

1. Arrange the following organisms inside an energy pyramid; make sure you put them in the right order: Grass, Lizard,
Hawk, and Cricket. Label the trophic levels on the dotted lines next to the pyramid.

a. Which organism has the biggest population?

________________________________________________

b. Which organism has the smallest population?

________________________________________________
2. Explain why producers should be the biggest trophic level, what would happen if you had more herbivores than
plants?

3. What happens to the energy that is not passed on to the next trophic level?

4. Describe the effect on the Kangaroo Rat population and the Hawk population if the Rattlesnake was removed from the
food web you constructed for Part Two.

Part Four: Food Chain Problems

Read each problem; write your answer on the line provided and show your work in the space below each question.
1. A wolf needs to eat three rabbits a day to survive. A rabbit needs to eat 15 berries a day to survive. How many berries
are needed to support a wolf for a day?

Answer _________________________________
2. An owl needs two snakes a day to survive. A snake needs three mice a day to survive. How many mice are needed to
support an owl for a day?

Answer _________________________________
How many mice are needed to support an owl for seven days?

Answer _________________________________
3. A hawk needs to eat two snakes a day in order to survive. A snake needs to eat three rats a day. A rat needs to eat
eight grasshoppers a day. A grasshopper needs to eat one small blade of grass a day to survive. How many
grasshoppers are needed to support a snake in one day?

Answer _________________________________
How many blades of grass are needed to support a hawk in one day?

Answer _________________________________
4. A mosquito larva needs to eat two, unicellular algae a day to have the energy to survive. A dragonfly larva needs to
eat three mosquito larvae a day. To be supported, a fish needs to eat 11 dragonfly larvae per day. A raccoon needs to
eat three fish a day to survive. How many algae cells does a raccoon need a day to survive?

Answer _________________________________
A family of raccoons is made up of the male parent, female parent, and two cubs. The cubs need half (50%) of the
food supply their parents do in order to survive. How many algae cells are needed to support the family of raccoons
for a day?

Answer _________________________________