A Visit to a Pond
Ponds are interesting places to visit. On a sunny day in the middle of summer, there is so much activity around the pond that it is hard for me to pull myself away.
The other day, I was standing on the edge of a pond when a dragonfly came close to me, hovered in the air for a few seconds, and then whizzed away. It struck me that the dragonfly had to have been burning a lot of energy in order to fly so fast and be able to hover in mid air like that. Then I started thinking about all of the other organisms in the pond and the energy they need in order to survive. Where does it come from and how do all of the organisms get what they need?
This is going to take some investigating, so I was wondering if you would help me find some answers. We need to create a pond food web, which shows the flow of energy through the organisms in a pond ecosystem. If you are willing to join in, let's start by taking a closer look at ponds and the living things that make ponds their home. Click on the Exploring Ponds link to continue.
The other day, I was standing on the edge of a pond when a dragonfly came close to me, hovered in the air for a few seconds, and then whizzed away. It struck me that the dragonfly had to have been burning a lot of energy in order to fly so fast and be able to hover in mid air like that. Then I started thinking about all of the other organisms in the pond and the energy they need in order to survive. Where does it come from and how do all of the organisms get what they need?
This is going to take some investigating, so I was wondering if you would help me find some answers. We need to create a pond food web, which shows the flow of energy through the organisms in a pond ecosystem. If you are willing to join in, let's start by taking a closer look at ponds and the living things that make ponds their home. Click on the Exploring Ponds link to continue.