Web Sleuths Activity
Confidential Case File #FW-502 5th Grade Life Science • Food Webs
Web Sleuths: The Forest Energy Mystery
Analyze forensic clues, uncover mystery organisms, and reconstruct the ecosystem food web.
Lead Sleuth:
Partner:
Date:
Mission Briefing Pine Ridge Reserve
Ecologists need to protect Pine Ridge Forest, but human activity threatens its balance! Read the forensic field clues below to identify each mystery organism from the suspect pool, determine its trophic role, and record who it eats or provides energy to.
SUSPECT POOL: White Oak Tree Cottontail Rabbit Forest Caterpillar Woodland Deer Mouse Red Fox Great Horned Owl Shelf Fungi
Dossier #01 • Alpha
Field Notes: I possess no mouth or legs. I capture sunlight, water, and air to make energy via photosynthesis. I drop sweet acorns every autumn.
Organism:
Trophic Role:
Dossier #02 • Beta
Field Notes: I have large ears and strong hind legs. I graze strictly on clover, green bark, and seedlings. Both the red fox and owl constantly hunt me.
Organism:
Trophic Role:
Dossier #03 • Gamma
Field Notes: I am a soft-bodied larval insect. I spend my days chewing through fresh oak leaves. Woodland mice look for me under branches for a fat-filled snack.
Organism:
Trophic Role:
Dossier #04 • Delta
Field Notes: I am a tiny nocturnal mammal. I enjoy eating juicy caterpillars as well as fallen acorns, making me an omnivore. Predators target me constantly.
Organism:
Trophic Role:
Dossier #05 • Epsilon
Field Notes: I fly silently on feathered wings at night. With razor-sharp talons, I hunt woodland mice and rabbits from the treetops. Nothing in this forest hunts me!
Organism:
Trophic Role:
Dossier #06 • Zeta
Field Notes: I am an intelligent predator with rusty red fur and a bushy tail. I stalk rabbits through the briars and pounce on mice running through the brush.
Organism:
Trophic Role:
Dossier #07 • Omega (The Forest Recycler) Crucial Ecological Role
Field Notes: I grow on rotting tree trunks and decaying logs. I do not hunt live prey. Instead, I chemically break down dead organisms and return rich nutrients back to the soil for plants!
Organism:
Role:
Forensic Tip: Remember: An energy arrow points to the consumer getting the energy (Food → Eater). Turn to Page 2 to reconstruct the Evidence Board!
Pine Ridge Ecosystem Evidence Board Reconstruction & Impact Analysis
Energy Flow Reconstruction Board
Instructions: 1. Write the correct organism names into their detective evidence cards below. 2. Draw neat pencil arrows showing every energy path (Organism → Eater).
Top Tier • Apex Predators (Carnivores) No natural predators hunt these adults
SUSPECT EPSILON (Night Raptor)
Name:
SUSPECT ZETA (Bushy-Tailed Hunter)
Name:
SUSPECT DELTA (Secondary Consumer / Omnivore)
Name:
Consumes both insects & tree acorns
Primary Consumers (Herbivores) Feed on plant matter
SUSPECT BETA (Long-Eared Grazer)
Name:
SUSPECT GAMMA (Leaf Muncher)
Name:
THE SUN
Ultimate energy origin for all living things
SUSPECT ALPHA (Producer)
Name:
Converts radiant solar energy to chemical energy
SUSPECT OMEGA (Decomposer)
Name:
Breaks down wastes from all tiers!
Forensic Case Debrief • Evidence Analysis
1. Follow the Energy Trail: Trace one single 4-organism food chain through your evidence web:
SUN →
→
→
→
2. Ecosystem Disturbance: If an invasive disease wiped out the Cottontail Rabbit population, describe how this would directly impact both the White Oak Tree and the Red Fox:
3. The Decomposer Dilemma: Shelf fungi do not hunt live animals. Why would the entire forest food web eventually collapse without them?
