Unit 2 Lesson 3: Decomposers in an Ecosystem

No

Are humans decomposers?

False

True or False: Glass jars, metal, and plastic produce good compost.

True

True or False: Grass clippings, fruit, and vegetable peels, leaves, eggshells, coffee grounds, and shredded newspaper produce good compost.

nutrients

Wastes substances from decomposers are __________ that plants need to grow.

A mixture of soil and decaying matter that provides the materials that plants need.

What is a compost?

recycle matter

When decomposers break down dead organisms, they return their matter to the air and soil.

air, soil, and water

When decomposers die, its once living material become waste. All these wastes are released into the _____,_____, and _____.

compost

A mixture of soil and decaying matter that provides the materials that plants need.

Mycologist

A scientist that studies fungi

decomposer

An organism that breaks down dead organisms and their wastes.

B break down plant and animal matter

Decomposers are important to the health and balance of an ecosystem because they: A prey on overpopulated animals B break down plant and animal matter C are food for plants D. produce oxygen for living things

Humans can build compost piles.

How can humans help decomposers?

Decomposers help to break down food waste, like in compost heaps.

How do decomposers help humans manage the amount of food waste they produce? Decomposers help food ripen. Decomposers cause food to get moldy. Decomposers help to break down food waste, like in compost heaps.

fungi

One group of living things that are neither plant nor animal. They release digestive juices into dead materials.

bacteria

One group of organisms that are too small to be seen without a microscope.

sugar

Some decomposers, like mushrooms and other fungi, can store food as _________________.

Nitrogen gas

The bacteria that live on the roots of plants change __________ gas into a form plants can use.