Food Web Diagram
Brandy Meilhon
SCI 230 Week 9

Create a diagram in which you illustrate the energy flow among organisms of a food chain in a particular ecosystem.

Select an ecosystem, such as a temperate forest, desert biome, or the Everglades. For the ecosystem, I chose The Great Barrier Reef, Australia.

Determine the interdependency of life in your ecosystem by examining its organisms.
Include the following:

List the organisms that can be found in your ecosystem. 1. Dolphin 2. Green Sea Turtle 3. Tiger Shark 4. Trevallies 5. Cardinal Fish 6. Manta Ray 7. Remora 8. Giant Triton 9. Crown of Thorns Starfish 10. Hard Coral 11. Zooxanthelleae 12. Sea Slugs 13. Sea Sponges 14. Spanish Dancer 15. Sea Grasses 16. Barracuda 17. Parrot Fish 18. Algae 19. Scorpion Fish 20. Goby 21. Saddled Butterfly Fish 22. Sea Anemones 23. Clownfish 24. Long Nosed Butterfly Fish 25. Barred Rabbit Fish 26. Branching Coral 27. Jellyfish 28. Coneshells 29. Bluestriped Fangblenny 30. Lizzard Fish 31. Phytoplankton 32. Coralline algae 33. Filamentous Turfalgae 34. Many species of seaweed 35. Bacteria
(PBS evolution, 2003)

* What is the benefit of this biodiversity? The Great Barrier Reef is well known for its vast biodiversity. Biodiversity is the variety of organisms that can be found to fulfill and the vital niches in an ecosystem. Each of the thousands of organisms are in a delicate balance with one and other, in that populations changes of one could drastically impact the numbers of others. Benefits of this diversity can come into play if, by chance, a particular population suffers many losses in number. If the ecosystem has a lot of diversity, then odds are other organisms could fill the voided niche left by the declining population. (Bellwood, Hughes, Folke & Nyström, 2004)

* Label major organisms that live in your selected ecosystem: P for producers, C for consumers, and D for decomposers.

1. Dolphin- Consumer/Predator 2. Green Sea Turtle- Consumer/Prey (Tiger Shark) 3. Tiger Shark- Consumer/Predator (Green Sea Turtle) 4. Trevallies- Consumer/Predator (Cardinal Fish) 5. Cardinal Fish- Consumer/Prey (Trevallies & Dolphin) 6. Manta Ray- Consumer 7. Remora- Consumer 8. Giant Triton- Consumer/Predator 9. Crown of Thorns Starfish- Predator/Prey 10. Hard Coral- Consumer/Prey 11. Zooxanthelleae- Producer 12. Sea Slugs- Consumer/Predator (Sea Sponges) 13. Sea Sponges- Consumer/Prey (Sea Slugs) 14. Spanish Dancer- Consumer 15. Sea Grasses- Producer 16. Barracuda- Consumer/Predator (Parrot Fish) 17. Parrot Fish- Consumer/Prey (Barracuda) 18. Algae- Producer 19. Scorpion Fish- Consumer/Predator (Goby) 20. Goby- Consumer/Prey (Scorpion Fish) 21. Saddled Butterfly Fish- Consumer 22. Sea Anemones- Consumer 23. Clownfish- Consumers 24. Long Nosed Butterfly Fish- Consumer 25. Barred Rabbit Fish- Consumer 26. Branching Coral 27. Jellyfish- Consumer 28. Coneshell- Predator (Goby) 29. Bluestriped Fangblenny- Consumer/Predator 30. Lizard Fish- Consumer 31. Phytoplankton- Producer 32. Coralline Algae- Producer 33. Filamentous Turfalgae- Producer 34. Many species of seaweed- Producer 35. Bacteria- Decomposers
(PBS evolution, 2003)

Write a summary of your food chain that:

* Describes the major categories of organisms: producers, consumers, and decomposers.

A food chain is a diagram that shows the energy flow through an ecosystem. The sun is the main source of energy for the Earth. Producers, such as phytoplankton, can take the energy from sunlight and generate energy-rich organic compounds. This is the first stage of the food chain in any ecosystem. Consumers can be further divided into other subgroups. The first consumer that follows the producers in the food chain is the primary consumers. These consumers are also known as herbivores. Examples of herbivores would be zooplankton and sea turtles. Secondary and Tertiary consumers follow. Secondary consumers are carnivorous organisms that feed on herbivores. Examples of these would be trevallies feeding on cardinal fish. Any consumer that eats another carnivore would then be considered a tertiary consumer. (Alevizon, 2010) Finally decomposers are vital to the decomposition of matter and recycling of nutrients. When organisms die, the material that makes up their tissue must be broken down and recycled into the ecosystem. Bacteria take on this role in most reef ecosystems. * Describes the interactions between organisms in your ecosystem.

There are a number of different ways in which organisms interact in an ecosystem. The most common is that of predator-prey relationships. Sharks are predators to green sea turtles. If either of the populations were to drastically change in numbers (increase or decrease), the other would be effected directly. (PBS evolution, 2003) One of the driving forces for Natural Selection is the relationship of competition. Competition is when organisms must struggle against each other for limited resources. These resources can be food, habitat, or even reproductive mates (when within the same species). An example of competition would be the relationship between Dolphins and Trevallies. Both of these species consume cardinal fish as a main source of their diet on the reef, and as a result compete for this food source. (PBS evolution, 2003) There are also symbiotic relationships between different organisms. Examples of such relationships are that of the Remora and the Manta Ray. Another example of creatures helping out creatures is the role of Zooxanthelleae and how it helps the hard coral to build. Hard coral is a living consumer and it needs complex biomolecules to process for energy. Zooxanthelleae are microscopic algae that live in the tissue of coral. These tiny algae generate carbohydrates through a process called photosynthesis. The coral than takes those carbohydrates, processes them for energy and uses that energy to generate more calcium carbonate, thus building the coral. (PBS evolution, 2003)

* Evaluates potential hazards caused by humans that might affect your ecosystem’s stability, such as environmental pollution. What effect does this hazard have on the biodiversity in your ecosystem?
The Giant Triton has been admired for its beautiful shell. Unfortunately, as a result, it has been over-harvested by collectors and its population has now decreased significantly (Queensland Museum, n.d.). As a result, the population of its prey, the crown-of-thorns starfish, has significantly increased. The crown-of-thorns starfish doesn't have many predators, but it does prey on hard coral. The overpopulation of these starfish has resulted in significant coral destruction thus endangering the ecosystem of the coral reef (PBS evolution, 2003).

* Lists the abiotic factors present in your ecosystem.

According to Isabelle Bounkeua (n.d.), the abiotic factors in the coral reef ecosystem are as follows: 1. Temperature 2. Nutrients 3. Light 4. Salinity 5. Depth 6. Wave Motions

The factors listed above are those of non-living activities, making them abiotic. Even though they are non-living, they do impact the life in the ecosystem, and thus are a significant part of the function of the ecosystem.

* Describes the food chains associated with your ecosystem. Address the following items: Zooxanthelleae → Coral → Crown-of-thorns Starfish → Giant triton * Name of the plant or animal: Crown-of-thorns starfish (Ancanthaster planci) * What it eats: Living Coral * What eats it: Giant triton
How it has adapted to the ecosystem: able to eat living coral since it can digest wax. It has spines and toxins that ward off most predators. (PBS evolution, 2003)

References:
Alevizon, W. (2010). Coral Reef Food Web. Retrieved from http://www.coral-reef-info.com/coral-reef-food-web.html

Bellwood, D. R., Hughes, T. P., Folke, C., & Nyström, M. (2004). Confronting the coral reef crisis. Nature, (429), 827-833. doi: 10.1038/nature02691

Bounkeua, I (n.d.) Coral Reefs. Retrieved from http://spressivo.com/isa/coralreef/index.htm

PBS evolution (2003) Coral Reef Connections. Retrieved from http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/evolution/survival/coral/index.html

Queensland Museum (n.d.) Giant triton. Retrieved from http://www.qm.qld.gov.au/Find+out+about/Animals+of+Queensland/Molluscs/Gastropods/Marine+snails/Giant+Triton