SCIENCE+REPORT


 * SCIENCE REPORT **

This is s report on the Food Webs and Chains in Ecosystems around Maribyrnong

For this project, my group (Anna,Sally,Elizabeth and Caitlen) were investigating the animals and plants found in a salt marsh ecosystem, Altona Coastal Park. A salt marsh ecosystem consists of grassy plains, tropical rainforests, and rocky platforms and is full of plants that decay after some time. Salt marshes can be found in shorelines that are sheltered from ocean waves; bays; steep coasts and near mouths of rivers. Because the salt marsh is located in the temperate zones, the temperature isn’t extreme.
 * Introduction:**


 * Discussion:**


 * Plan​t​s** (2 plants chosen for the food web and chain)
 * **NAME OF THE PLANT** || **WHAT ANIMAL EATS THE PLANT?** ||
 * **Algae**

|| Fish, snails, mussels, ducks, crabs, worms, shrimps, insects ||
 * **Salt water cordgrass //(Spartina alterniflora)//**

|| Ducks, geese, birds, muskrats, deers ||


 * Picture Below: Food Web for Salt March ecosystem in Altona Coastal Park**
 * The Names Of all the Competitors:**

-Birds and rats compete for cordgrass -Tadpoles and fish compete for algae -Fish, tortoises, snakes and birds compete for tadpoles -Tortoises, cats, rats, snakes and birds compete for fish -Rats and birds compete for tortoises -Cats, snakes and birds compete for rats -Birds and snakes compete for cats

If the nuber of first-order consumers increase the producer would decrease due to the fact that more animals would be around to eat them. For the producers to increase the first-order consumers would have to decrease that way there would be less animals around to eat them.


 * Introduced species**

One of the introduced species in the salt marsh ecosystem is the Sickle Grass //(Parapholis incurva).//



Picture: Sickle Grass


 * Conclusion:**

In coclusion Algae and cordgrass are the producers. Which therefore means that the tortoises, snakes, tadpoles, cats, rats, fish and birds are the consumers.

Also if in a food web, the population of one species changes, it affects the population of other species. Not only that but introduced species can also tend to disrupt the food web in an ecosystem because they will compete for food with the other organisms in the food web which will make it unbalanced.


 * ** Name of animal ** || ** Order of consumer ** || ** Herbivore, carnivore or omnivore ** ||
 * Common long-necked tortoise || Third-order consumer || Carnivore ||
 * Tiger snake || Sixth-order consumer || Carnivore ||
 * Tadpole || First-order consumer || Herbivore ||
 * Feral cat || Fifth-order consumer || Carnivore ||
 * Water rat || Fourth-order consumer || Carnivore ||
 * Australian smelt || Second-order consumer || Carnivore ||
 * Vulture || Top-order consumer || Carnivore ||

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