Everglades capstone project

By LadyofHats (Own work) [CC0], via Wikimedia Commons https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File%3AFood_web_diagram.svg

Consider the food web above depicting a terrestrial food web and a marine food web. In the Everglades, a freshwater marsh, terrestrial and aquatic environments are interconnected. The complexity of this unique ecosystem can be analyzed by constructing a food web to trace the flow of energy between organisms.

Part 1: Your task for this project is to construct an illustrated food web to diagram trophic interactions in the Everglades ecosystem. The food web must be an original creation, you cannot submit a food web that you find online! You must use a minimum of 8 species that are found in the Everglades. You must indicate, using arrows or lines, the flow of energy between the species in your diagram. Be sure to upload your food web as an attachment in the assignment dropbox. Your constructed food web is worth 60 points.

Click here for a resource that will allow you to identify plants and animals that are found in the Everglades.

Part 2: Answer the following questions about the food web you constructed. Answers should be provided on a separate attachment in the assignment dropbox. Answers to the 10 questions using correct spelling and grammar are worth a total of 40 points.

1) List the producer(s) in your food web.

2) List the herbivores in your food web.

3) Are there any organisms in your food web that are omnivores? On which trophic levels are they feeding?

4) List the carnivores in your food web.

5) Identify and list a food chain within your food web that depicts at least three trophic levels. What organism in your selected food chain is a secondary consumer?

6) Are there any nonnative species in your food web? Briefly describe are they altering this food web in the Everglades ecosystem?

7) Choose a primary consumer in your food web. If its population suddenly started to decline, what density-dependent (biotic) factors could be causing it?

8) Choose a secondary consumer in your food web. If its population suddenly started to increase, what density-dependent (biotic) factors could be causing it?

9) Are there any keystone species in your food web? If a keystone species were removed from your food web, how would its loss impact the other organisms?

10) Are there any endangered or threatened species in your food web? If the species goes extinct, how would its loss impact the other organisms?

Your capstone project is worth a total of 100 points.

Start Date

Jan 6, 2018 12:00 AM

Due Date

Apr 4, 2018 11:30 PM

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Rubric Name: Capstone Project Rubric

Criteria

Level 5 20 points

Level 4 16 points

Level 3 11 points

Level 2 7 points

Level 1 3 points

Criterion 1 Part A

Eight or more species are depicted in an original constructed food web.

At least 7 species are depicted in an original constructed food web.

Five or six species are depicted in an original constructed food web.

Only three to four species are depicted in an original constructed food web.

Two or fewer species are depicted in the constructed food web OR the food web is not an original student construction.

Criterion 2 Part A

Trophic structure is correctly and clearly indicated using arrows or lines to show feeding relationships for at least 8 species depicted.

Trophic structure is correctly indicated using arrows or lines to show feeding relationships for at least six species depicted.

Trophic structure is correctly indicated for at least four species depicted.

Trophic structure is NOT indicated for one or two of the species depicted.

Trophic structure is NOT indicated for any species depicted OR the food web submitted is a copy of one found online (not original work)

Criterion 3 Part A

All species depicted in the constructed food web are found in the Everglades.

All species depicted in the constructed food web, EXCEPT one, are found in the Everglades.

Two species in the constructed food web are NOT found in the Everglades.

Three or four species depicted in the constructed food web are NOT found in the Everglades.

Five or six species depicted in the constructed food web are NOT found in the Everglades OR the species depicted are from an unoriginal food web.

Criterion 4 Part B

At least 9 questions from questions 1-10 are answered completely and correctly.

Seven or Eight questions out of questions 1-10 are answered completely and correctly.

Only five or six questions from questions 1-10 are answered completely or correctly.

Only three or four questions from questions 1-10 are answered completely or correctly.

Two or fewer questions are answered completely and/or correctly from questions 1-10.

Spelling/Grammar

0-2 errors in spelling/grammar.

3-4 errors in spelling/grammar.

5-6 errors in spelling/grammar.

7-8 errors in spelling/grammar.

9 or more errors in spelling/grammar.

Overall Score

Level 4 90 or more

Level 3 80 or more

Level 2 70 or more

Level 1 0 or more

Excellent