Year 11 Summer Learning
Jurassic Park Ecology
In the booklet is information to help you complete the three activities below. More details of
the activities are found within the booklet and are highlighted using the three headings
below in red. There are some reference sources to help you, but use any other reference
sources you find helpful. Don’t forget to site them!
Activate:
a) Detail your own food chain for a dinosaur habitat
b) Draw your own pyramid of numbers, biomass and energy for the dinosaurs
found in Jurassic Park
Create:
a) Complete the Energy Loss Practical Activity: Leaky Cups
b) Write a letter to the Board of Chairmen that own Jurassic Park explaining how
DDT is travelling through the food chain and accumulating to fatal levels. You
must include a possible solution to the problem.
c) Write a mortuary report to be forwarded to the Board of Chairmen explaining
how excess fertilisers cause Eutrophication and possible solutions to this
problem to prevent any more dinosaurs being affected!
d) Design a poster or leaflet with your ideas for reducing land pollution at
Jurassic Park.
Challenge:
a) Make a presentation which you can show to the Board of Chairmen that own
Jurassic Park explaining what the green house effect is and how carbon
dioxide produced by the coal power plant is creating more greenhouse gases
heating up the atmosphere. You must draw the carbon cycle and explain how
CO2 is being pumped into the atmosphere. You must come up with any
possible solutions that you may have come across in this booklet and possible
renewable energy sources to run Jurassic Park.
Reference Sources:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/gcsebitesize/science/ocr_gateway_pre_2011/environ
ment/0_ecology_organisms1.shtml
https://revisionworld.com/gcse-revision/geography/cold-environments/energyecology-and-environment
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ecology
Ecology Booklet
Name:
Hi I’m Chris! I am going to help
you throughout your Jurassic
Park Ecology Booklet.
Class:
Teacher’s Name:
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WELCOME TO JURASSIC PARK
Learning Intentions:
By the end of this booklet you will;
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Be able to define key ecological terms.
Understand how energy flows through an ecosystem.
The importance of interdependence in food chains and webs.
Have an understanding of important ecological processes such as the
carbon cycle, the greenhouse effect, Eutrophication and different forms of
pollution.
Welcome to Jurassic Park! You are part of a scientific research team that has been
sent to Isla Nublar, the Island that is home to dinosaurs! Through scientific methods
we have been able to bring dinosaurs back to life. Your objective is to observe the
ecology of the island, highlighting any problems and possible solutions to the board
of chairmen that run Jurassic Park.
When we are studying ecology we try to find out as much information as possible
about a particular area to understand what is going on. There are several key terms
that me must learn and be able to define. Using research sources come up with
definitions for the following ecological terms.
Ecology:
Environment:
Habitat:
Populations:
Ecosystem:
Community:
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It should be remembered that an ecosystem is self-sustaining and that the whole of
the Earth's surface which contains living organisms can be regarded as one vast
ecosystem. This is called the biosphere.
Excellent work! Can you now put the key terms in the right place below? Individuals of the same species are called a ………………….
 Population & populations of other species is called a …………………….
 Community &non-living part of the environment is called an …………………..
In ecology we study how organisms by looking at two important factors. The first is called B……………….. Factors. Biotic
factors are created by living organisms within an environment that can affect the life of another organism. An example
would be a T-Rex preying on another dinosaur. The other key components are called A………….. Factors. These physical
factors are based upon the relationship between the organisms and the environment.
When we are studying the ecology of a particular ecosystem we want to gather as much information
as possible. Biotic factors we may want to study include; predation, reproduction, intra and
interspecies competition etc.
A biotic factors or physical factors we may want to study include;
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Surface area/ volume of an area.
Climatic conditions such as temperature, rain fall etc.
Soil conditions (EDAPHIC).
Mineral availability.
pH.
Oxygen content.
Biotic and abiotic factors are interrelated. This means that a change in one will affect another. An
example would be that if the pH of the soil in Jurassic Park was to become too acidic, then plants
would not grow. This means that dinosaurs that eat plants would starve and die and this would
mean there would be less plant eating dinosaurs (herbivore) for meat eating dinosaurs (carnivores)
to consume.
Write down any key or new
words that you have come across
in this section to help you revise
later!
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WANT TO SEE HOW ANIMALS EAT THEIR FOOD?? (FEEDING RELATIONSHIPS)
Food is important to all of us; it is the source of energy that our bodies need to keep them working
and enable us to move.
Green plants are the world's food factories. Because green plants are the only things that make food,
they are called p________. They use energy from the s___. The plant photosynthesises and makes
g________, which is a form of sugar. Plants get eaten by animals and because of this the sun is the
ultimate source of energy for the earth.
One of the most important aspects of Jurassic Park was that it would become its own self sufficient
ecosystem. For this reason it was essential to get the right dinosaurs to live in Jurassic Park. As you
may have seen from The Lion King, life is a cycle (the circle of life). This means that all the living
organisms in an ecosystem are INTERDEPENDENT meaning that they all depend on one another to
survive. We can study this process as FEEDING RELATIONSHIPS. Feeding relationships are
represented using a FOOD CHAIN. A Jurassic Park example is shown below.
Plants
Brachiosaurus
Velociraptor
Tyrannosaurus Rex
In a food chain the flow of energy through the food chain is represented by arrows. The plants
PRODUCE food via photosynthesis; this is then CONSUMED by the brachiosaurus who in turn is then
eaten by the Velociraptor who is then eaten by the tyrannosaurus. Energy passes along a food chain
from producers to consumers as one member of the chain eats the next. The stages in a food chain
are called feeding levels or TROPHIC LEVELS. In the example above the trophic levels are as follows;
PLANTS: PRODUCER (PRIMARY TROPHIC LEVEL)
BRACHIOSAURUS: PRIMARY CONSUMER (SECONDARY TROPHIC LEVEL)
VELOCIRAPTOR: SECONDARY CONSUMER (TERTIARY TROPHIC LEVEL)
T-REX: TERTIARY CONSUMER (QUATERNARY TROPHIC LEVEL)
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Decomposers
When animals and plants die their bodies decay. This is because they are fed upon by bacteria and
other micro organisms which break them down.
The organisms which bring about decay are called d________. Because of the action of decomposers,
chemical elements are released from the bodies of the dead animals and plants. These substances
are absorbed by plants and can go through the food chain all over again.
ACTIVATE
Come up with your own food chain and draw it in the space below.
Remember to write down any key words to help
you revise! Key points to remember are that food
chains show feeding relationships within an
ecosystem and that the flow of energy through a
food chain is represented using an arrow!
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FOOD WEBS
A food web is a little more complicated than a food chain as it shows a collection of food chains
found within a habitat. For this reason, a food web is a more realistic representation of feeding
relationships. Food webs show how organisms may be eaten by more than one consumer and
those consumers may feed upon more than one species.
TROPHIC
LEVELS
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The number of organisms in a food chain is usually only a few.
This is because energy is lost between each level of the food
chain. Energy is lost as organisms respire, move, excrete and
build mass.
We talked about trophic levels on a page 5. These are simply
feeding levels in food chains/webs.
*Remember that tertiary consumers such as T-Rex are known as
top or CLIMAX CARNIVORES!
Below are some examples of trophic levels in varying food chains;
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PYRAMIDS OF NUMBERS AND BIOMASS
Whenever we are studying the dinosaurs in the wild we may want to create a pyramid of numbers or
biomass to represent what we see in the field.
As you go along a food chain, the number of organisms that can be supported at each trophic level
gets less and less. A given number of plants will feed a smaller number of herbivore dinosaurs which
will feed an even smaller number of carnivorous dinosaurs such as T-Rex. The drop in numbers at
each level in a food chain gives us what we call a pyramid of numbers.
1 T-REX
5 VELOCIRAPTORS
10 TRICERATOPS
100 PLANTS
A pyramid of numbers is a diagram that represents the numbers of organisms at each trophic level in
an ecosystem at any one time.
There can be some unusual shaped pyramids of
numbers. This happens when the producer is very
large such as a tree and so there are less of them or
when parasites feed on the consumers such as lice
on a lion.
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PYRAMIDS OF BIOMASS
In ecology a pyramid of biomass is used to determine the DRY MASS of an organism and is a far
better indicator than fresh mass as most organisms contain large quantities of water such as most
mammals being made up of 67% water! Biomass decreases up the pyramid as there are less and less
organisms at each level. An overview of pyramids of biomass, energy and numbers can be seen
below.
ACTIVATE
Now try and draw your own pyramid of numbers, biomass and energy for the dinosaurs found in
Jurassic Park in the space below!
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CREATE
Energy Loss Practical Activity: Leaky Cups
This activity aims to demonstrate the loss of energy between different organisms in a food chain.
The aim of the activity is to pass energy, represented by water, along the food chain.
You need a polystyrene cup with approximately 6 holes punched into it. The idea is to pass water
from the producer along the food chain. At the beginning of the chain your producer is a cup full of
water (energy). Starting with the primary producer, try to pass as much energy as you can along the
chain, from one person to the next using the leaky cups. How much water is left in the cup for the
person at the end of your chain? Does the length of the chain make any difference?
TOXINS IN THE FOOD CHAIN (DDT)
Many compounds, such as the insecticide DDT, are toxic.
This is because they are not bio………………… (cannot be
broken down by the environment). DDT accumulates and
builds up in the fatty tissues of animals. This means that
DDT levels in the primary consumers build up in the
secondary consumers when they are eaten. Tertiary
consumers such as our T-Rex will eat the secondary
consumers and over time build up dangerous levels of DDT
or other toxins in their bodies potentially causing death.
JURASSIC PARK MISSION!
In Jurassic Park insecticides such as DDT are used to keep the plants that are eaten by the herbivore
dinosaurs healthy! However, last month whilst carrying out our routine check ups on each dinosaur
we discovered dangerously high levels of DDT in our Tyrannosaurus Rex population.
CREATE
Your mission is to write a letter to the Board of Chairmen that own Jurassic Park explaining how DDT
is travelling through the food chain and accumulating to fatal levels. You must include a possible
solution to the problem. But hurry! Before any T-Rex die!
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Dear Chairmen of the Board,
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FERTILIZERS
A fertilizer is a substance which contains chemical elements needed by plants such as N_______,
P_______ and P________. In a natural plant community, when a plant dies, it decays. This means
that the c________ in the plant can be reabsorbed and used again by other plants.
In a field with a crop in it, e.g. wheat, the plants are not allowed to die, but are h________. This means
that the c_______ are not returned to the s____ and so the soil becomes poor or lacking in n________.
This problem can be helped by adding f________ to the soil. There are two kinds of f________:
O________ and I_______.
O________ fertilizers are obtained from animals and plants and are therefore natural. Examples of
these are g_______ manure and b______ manure.
I_________ fertilizers are manufactured and are therefore a________.
Advantages and disadvantages of organic and inorganic fertilizers
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Organic fertilizers take longer to break down and therefore it takes a longer period of time for the
nutrients to get into the plant.
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Inorganic fertilizers can be absorbed by the plant straight away.
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The nutrients from organic fertilizers such as green manure are not as easily washed out of the
soil by rain as those from inorganic fertilizers.
The key points to remember are that fertilizers can
be either organic or inorganic and contain
NITROGEN, PHOSPHOROUS and CARBON.
Fertilizers can be NON-BIO or BIODEGRADABLE.
Biodegradable means that it can be broken up over
time naturally.
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EUTROPHICATION
Eutrophication is a process wherein if a lot of f______ is added to the soil it may drain into l____ and
rivers. This makes the water richer in n_______ such as n________ and p________. With so many
nutrients available to them, the a______ multiply rapidly and the water turns g_____. This is called
an ALGAE BLOOM. When the algae die, they decay. The b______, which bring about decay, multiply
so fast that they use up all the o_______. As a result, the f____ die.
DINO DISASTER!
During the stormy weather last month, Jurassic Park had a significant amount of rain fall.
Unfortunately excess amounts of the fertilisers used to keep the vegetation in the park healthy have
been washed into the water dinosaur pens such as Shonisaurus. This has lead to Eutrophication
taking place in the pens and unfortunately one of our water dinosaurs has died.
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CREATE
Your mission is to write a mortuary report to be forwarded to the Board of Chairmen explaining how
excess fertilisers cause Eutrophication and possible solutions to this problem to prevent any more
dinosaurs being affected!
Remember that when you are writing your report,
marks will be given for good use of grammar and
punctuation!
This dinosaur was from Ichthyosaur group (means fish
lizards). Shonisaurus was the biggest. It has the length
of 50 feet which is one big dolphin, that's for sure.
There is a rumour of one being found even bigger at 69
feet in length. It was told to be found in a remote river
bank in Canada. This information was not made very
public so scientists are not sure if it's true. The fossils
were never released.
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Dear Chairmen of the Board,
WATER POLLUTION
Bodies of water can be polluted via alternative processes as well, not just excess fertilisers. These
alternative forms of water pollution include;
1. Waste from factories - used for water cooling processes may contain poisonous chemicals such
as cyanide, mercury, or lead. These can pass along food chains to fish meaning that birds,
humans and other fish-eating animals get poisoned.
2. Waste from farms is called slurry. It is a mixture of animal droppings and urine. It can be sprayed
onto fields as a fertilizer, therefore it can easily be washed into streams and rivers and pollute them.
3. Oil - spills from tankers and oil rigs poisons sea birds and clogs their feathers so they cannot fly.
This can also kill plants and animals living along the sea shore and ruin beaches.
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LAND POLLUTION
There are also several forms of land pollution that we must be aware of namely;
1. Household refuse - Humans produce millions of tonnes of waste each year. This is usually
buried in landfill sites or burned. This causes environmental problems like breeding grounds for
disease, destruction of habitats. This can be reduced by using bio-degradable (easily broken
down) products as opposed to non-biodegradable, and also recycling.
2. Deforestation - Tropical forests are cleared for timber and land use e.g. building of houses.
This destroys important habitats and reduces variation of species. Trees hold soil in position
and retain water; therefore by removing the trees in an area soil has nothing to bind to and so
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is washed away and clogs up waterways. We can reduce the effect of deforestation by
replanting trees and re-ploughing the land in an effort to regenerate water levels.
DINO DISASTER!
As you well know the weather last month at Jurassic was terrible with extremely stormy
conditions for many weeks. When the storms passed, the staff found that NON BIODEGRADABLE
rubbish from the Jurassic Park shop had
been blown out of the bins provided and
scattered all over the park. This rubbish
is a health hazard to dinosaurs when
consumed as they may choke. Your
mission is to come up with a leaflet
laying out different ways that Jurassic
Park can reduce the amount of land fill
and pollution it creates to make a
cleaner Park for tourists. Opposite is an
image of the bins used at Jurassic Park.
CREATE
Design a poster or leaflet with your ideas
for reducing land pollution at Jurassic
Park.
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LAND POLLUTION LEAFLET
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AIR POLLUTION
1. Smoke: Air pollution can arise from smoke when fossil fuels are burnt. Smoke can have
harmful effects on both plants and animals.
 When breathed in tiny particles of smoke can cause irritation to the respiratory system. This
can lead to bronchitis (inflammation of the bronchus).
 When smoke is suspended in the air photosynthesis may be reduced as the light intensity at
ground level could be lower.
 Soot and ash could coat plant leaves preventing photosynthesis or blocking stomata.
2. Sulphur dioxide is released into the air when fossil fuels are burnt. In large concentrations
there may be harmful effects.
 It can cause damage to the respiratory system in humans.
 Growth in plants may be reduced and some plants may be killed.
3. Acid rain
Sulphur dioxide and nitrogen oxides can combine with water in the atmosphere forming acid rain.
Acid rain can effect
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trees, plants
lakes
fish etc.
4. Carbon dioxide
The increased concentration of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere is thought to have acted like a
blanket keeping the heat into the Earth. This is known as the "_______ ________".
Remember that a pollutant is a substance which
contaminates in a poisonous or harmful way.
There are different forms of pollution.
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THE GREENHOUSE EFFECT
The greenhouse effect is a natural process that heats the Earth up. THIS IS ESSENTIAL FOR LIFE ON
EARTH! Without it Earth would not be able to support life as it would be too cold. What happens is
that sunlight (also known as UV rays) hit the Earth’s surface and heats it up. They then are emitted
as INFRARED RADIATION. Some of this Infrared radiation is trapped by gases in the atmosphere and
stays in the atmosphere to heat up the planet and some escapes as shown below.
Some gases that trap heat are methane and CARBON DIOXIDE because they trap heat they are
known as GREENHOUSE GASES. However because humans are burning fossil fuels and releasing
more and more carbon dioxide into the atmosphere there is too much greenhouse gas. This means
that too much heat is trapped and so the planet is warming up too fast. As a result the polar ice caps
are melting.
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THE CARBON CYCLE
All living things are made of
carbon. Carbon is also a part
of the ocean, air, and even
rocks. Because the Earth is a
dynamic place, carbon does
not stay still. It is on the
move!
In the atmosphere, carbon is
attached to some oxygen in a
gas called CARBON DIOXIDE.
Plants use carbon dioxide and
sunlight to make their own
food and grow. The carbon
becomes part of the plant.
Plants that die and are buried
may turn into fossil fuels
made of carbon like coal and
oil over millions of years.
When humans burn fossil
fuels, most of the carbon
quickly enters the atmosphere as carbon dioxide.
Carbon dioxide is a greenhouse gas and traps heat in the atmosphere. Without it and other
greenhouse gases, Earth would be a frozen world. But humans have burned so much fuel that there
is about 30% more carbon dioxide in the air today than there was about 150 years ago, and Earth is
becoming a warmer place. In fact, ice cores show us that there is now more carbon dioxide in the
atmosphere than there has been in the last 420,000 years.
Carbon is released into the ATMOSPHERE as CARBON DIOXIDE through several processes;
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RESPIRATION: Carbon dioxide is released into the atmosphere by respiring animals and plants.
COMBUSTION: Fuels containing carbon such as wood, oil, coal are burnt (combusted) the carbon
in these fuels bonds with oxygen in the air to produce carbon dioxide.
DECAY: When plants and animals die they are broken down by DECOMPOSER BACTERIA. Carbon
dioxide is released into the ATMOSPHERE by respiring bacteria or converted into fossil fuels
underground over millions of years.
Remember that CARBON DIOXIDE is also known
by its chemical symbol CO2. This is because it is
made up of one carbon molecule and two
oxygen molecules.
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HOW DO WE REDUCE CO2 IN THE ATMOSPHERE?
There are several ways that carbon dioxide is removed from the atmosphere;
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CO2 can be absorbed by the oceans and will create carbonic acid.
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CO2 can be absorbed and form carbonate rocks such as calcium carbonate.
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PHOTOSYNTHESIS: Plants use carbon dioxide and water in sunlight to produce GLUCOSE which is
a form of SUGAR and OXYGEN. This is important as planting trees can significantly reduce the
amount of atmospheric CO2. Hence why DEFORESTATION is also very bad for the environment.
Below is a diagram showing photosynthesis in action;
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PTERODACTYL TERROR!
Pterodactyl is a flying dinosaur that is
allowed to fly freely around the island
and its surrounding area allowing
them to hunt freely thanks to
electronic tags we can keep an eye on
the population.
Pterodactyls lay eggs which they then
carry in a pouch to keep them
incubated. Once the eggs hatch the
pterodactyl will build a nest high up in
mountains or trees to keep their
young safe from any predators.
Unfortunately Jurassic Park uses enormous amounts of energy to run. This energy comes from a coal
power plant found on the island in the safe zone. This coal plant and many others around the world
are increasing the amount of CO2 in the atmosphere by burning fossil fuels. This build up of
greenhouse gases is heating up the atmosphere causing the Pterodactyl eggs to hatch prematurely
meaning a high percentage of the young are dying.
CHALLENGE
In your final mission you must make a presentation which you can show to the Board of Chairmen
that own Jurassic Park explaining what the green house effect is and how carbon dioxide produced
by the coal power plant is creating more greenhouse gases heating up the atmosphere. You must
draw the carbon cycle and explain how CO2 is being pumped into the atmosphere. You must come
up with any possible solutions that you may have come across in this booklet and possible
renewable energy sources to run Jurassic Park.
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HOW DO WE REDUCE POLLUTION (CONSERVATION METHODS)?
We can help restore Mother Nature back to equilibrium through the following methods;
 By passing laws. For example, the Clean Air Act of 1968 meant that smokeless zones
were introduced and only smokeless fuel could be burned.
 Cleaner smoke and fumes - cleaning systems fitted to power station chimneys and car
exhaust pipes. They stop sulphur dioxide and other pollutants from getting into the air.
 Cleaner fuel - Sulphur removed from coal and oil before they are burned in power
stations. Lead free petrol.
 Reforestation - Planting new trees to replace those which have been cut down
 Farmers can save wildlife - by only using pesticides when they are needed and by working
out exactly how much fertilizer is required for a crop and apply when it is not going to
rain.
 Sewage disposal - this can be regulated. Provide adequate water treatment.
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ABIOTIC:
AIR POLLUTION:
BIOTIC:
CARBON CYCLE:
CONSERVATION:
EUTROPHICATION:
FERTILISERS:
PHOTOSYNTHESIS:
Pyramids of energy/mass/ numbers:
RESPIRATION:
TROPHIC LEVELS:
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1.
In food
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