Trace Matter from Plants to Animals - 5th Grade Science

Mouse. Mouse directly consumes the producer (corn) in this food chain.

Mushroom. Mushrooms are fungi that break down dead organic material.

Plant → deer. Arrows show matter flowing from source (plant) to consumer (deer).

Air CO$_2$ → plant sugar → deer body. Carbon atoms move from atmospheric CO$_2$ through plants to herbivores.

Growth. Organisms increase mass by incorporating matter from consumed food.

Matter moves into the animal and becomes part of its body or waste. Consumed plant molecules are digested and incorporated into animal tissues.

Direction of matter and energy transfer. Arrows point from eaten organism to eater, showing flow of nutrients.

Glucose (sugar). C$6$H${12}$O$_6$ is the primary energy storage molecule made by plants.

Water. H$_2$O molecules split during photosynthesis, providing hydrogen for glucose.

Carbon dioxide. CO$_2$ provides the carbon backbone for organic molecules in plants.

Photosynthesis. Plants combine CO$_2$ and H$_2$O using sunlight to create glucose.

Consumer. Consumers cannot produce their own food and depend on other organisms.

Producer. Producers convert light energy into chemical energy through photosynthesis.

Anything that has mass and takes up space. Matter is the physical substance that makes up all living and non-living things.

Return nutrients to the soil and environment. Decomposition releases minerals and nutrients for producer uptake.

Leaves. Leaves contain high nutrient content and are easily accessible to herbivores.

Matter in the food it eats (plants or other animals). Animals build their bodies from molecules obtained through their diet.

$CO_2$ → plant sugar → deer muscle. Matter flows from air to plants to herbivores.

From eaten organism to eater. Arrows point toward the organism receiving the matter.