Zoo Photography Project

An ecosystem is a biological environment consisting of all the organisms living in a

particular area, as well as all the nonliving, physical components of the environment with which

the organisms interact, such as air, soil, water and sunlight. It is all the organisms in a given area,

along with the nonliving (abiotic) factors with which they interact; a biological community and

its physical environment.

Through this project you will be getting an in-depth look into a specific ecosystem. In

groups of 2-3 people, you will choose an ecosystem that is represented by the Calgary Zoo. Once

you have chosen your ecosystem, you will need to research the required information and

choose a way to represent it visually. All of the required information is below with

accompanying value of each. Some things to remember:

All of your pictures must come from the Calgary Zoo. We go on October 5th, so you

need to make sure you are organized and know what pictures you will need.

You must use the proper binomial naming for each organism in your project

Your project is due and will be presented to the class on October 12

There will be a quiz on October 13 to test your knowledge

Feel free to be creative!

Project Outline
Part One: Ecosystem /10

TASK: You and your partner(s) need to make an ecosystem visual (PowerPoint, poster,

diorama, etc.) which includes all key organisms and abiotic factors in your ecosystem.

Take picture(s) showing the organisms, the abiotic factors, AND other biotic factors and

include them in the visual. Label the abiotic and biotic factors.

GRADE: key organisms (5 marks), abiotic factors (3 marks), labels (2 marks)

Part Two: The Biosphere /6

The biosphere consists of three components: atmosphere, lithosphere, and hydrosphere.

TASK: Research and provide a definition of each component of the biosphere, finding

what fits in each of the three categories. Take a digital picture of each component.

GRADE: 2 marks for each complete definition and appropriate picture

Part Three: Organization of Organisms /8

TASK: Create a trophic level diagram specifically for your ecosystem. You must

include all the specifics for each level on your diagram (example below).

a. Producers (autotrophs)

b. Herbivores

c. Carnivores
 d. Primary, secondary, tertiary consumers

e. Top level predators

f. 1st, 2nd, 3rd, etc. trophic levels

g. Energy %

h. Names and pictures of specific organisms in each level

GRADE: Trophic level diagram (1 mark for a-h, for a total of 8 marks)

Part Four: Food Chains and Food Webs /14

TASK: Answer the following questions:

(1)What is a food chain? (2)What is a food web? (3) What is the difference

between the two?

Create a food web that is specific for your ecosystem with at least 5 pictures. Make sure

to include the arrows and label the food web using proper binomial names. Include all

the organisms in your ecosystem. Include the labels producer, decomposer, primary,

secondary, tertiary consumer much like the example below. (5 marks)

 GRADE: Answers to questions (4 marks), food web (10 marks - 5 for pictures, 1 for

arrows, 1 for binomial names, 2 for organisms, 1 for labels)

Part Five: Biogeochemical Cycles /18

TASK: Provide a labeled diagram for the following 3 biogeochemical cycles:

Hydrological Cycle, Nitrogen Cycle and Carbon Cycle (these need to be hand drawn

or computer drawn by you). Make sure your drawing corresponds to your ecosystem

(include the various organisms from your ecosystem)

 a. Identify one environmental issue that your ecosystem could encounter

with each biogeochemical cycle. Be Specific

GRADE: Biogeochemical cycles (5 marks each, for a total of 15 marks), environmental

issue (1 for each cycle, for a total of 3 marks)

Part Six: Dichotomous Key /10

TASK: Take 10 photos and create a dichotomous key

GRADE: Complete dichotomous key (10 marks) - you must have 10 photos, all questions

must be yes or no and it must work for each scenario.