Elementary Ecosystem Investigation: Decomposition Stations
Investigate Decomposers and Their Habitat
Decomposition stations in your outdoor classroom allow you to observe decomposition over a long period of time and learn how various natural cycles such as the carbon and nitrogen cycles function in nature.
By maintaining a rotting log learning station, compost bin/pile, or vermicomposting bin, you will learn about a variety of decomposers (bacteria, fungi, arthropods and worms) as well as organisms that feed on the decomposers (salamanders, arthropods and worms).
| What are Decomposers? |
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Decomposition:
- Decomposition is the process of turning dead material into nutrients that plants can use as food.
- It is nature's way of recycling.
Decomposers:
- Organisms that make this happen are called decomposers - they are nature's cleanup crew!
- These organisms feed on dead animals and feces (poop) as well as dead plant materials such as leaf litter and wood.
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Termite in Rotting Log
Dreamstime
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 Can you imagine what the world would look and smell like if we didn't have decomposers to clean up these things? |
What types of organisms are decomposers?
- Microscopic organisms (those that are too small to see with the human eye), like bacteria, are the largest group of decomposers.
- Fungus (molds and mushrooms) are common decomposers that are large enough to see with the human eye.
- Invertebrates (animals without a backbone) such as beetles, snails, millipedes, termites, and others also help with decomposition.
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Mushrooms on Rotting Log
flickr - The_Gut
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| Roles of Decomposers |
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| Food Chain:
Decomposers play an important role in every food chain!
A food chain shows the transfer of nutrients and energy (in the form of food) from one organism to another.
- The sun gives energy to producers (plants).
- Consumers (animals) eat the plants.
- The energy is passed from the producers to the consumers.
- Each organism in the chain is linked together based on what it eats.
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Food Chain
Dreamstime
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- When consumers die or produce waste, decomposers take some of that energy and return it back to the soil for plants to use once again.
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Nitrogen Cycle and Carbon Cycle:
Decomposers play an important role in the Nitrogen Cycle and the Carbon Cycle.
- In these cycles, pure carbon and nitrogen are taken from the atmosphere and soil and combined into other molecules that plants and animals pass along through the food chain.
- At the end of the food chain, decomposers break down these molecules and return carbon and nitrogen to the soil and air.
- Without decomposers, these cycles would end, and our air and soil would become unusable.
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Carbon Cycle
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Nitrogen Cycle
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| Habitat Types |
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Log Decomposition Station:
- A log decomposition station represents what happens on a larger scale in real forests.
- When a tree falls, it remains there as decomposers slowly break it down as they consume it.
- This returns nutrients to the soil
- Complex molecules are broken down into simple carbon, nitrogen, and other minerals that living plants can use.
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Beetles in Rotting Log
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- A forest is considered a major habitat
- The fallen log is considered a microhabitat (a smaller habitat within a major habitat).
- The log provides food, water, shelter, and places to raise young for animals living around it.
- Producers, consumers, and decomposers can live in a fallen log.
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Compost Piles/Bins:
In a compost bin or pile, bacteria (decomposers) use oxygen and heat to break down materials such as leaves, sticks, grass clippings, and dead flowers.
- Finished compost is dark, spongy, and full of nutrients.
- It can be spread into gardens to fertilize plants, help break up the soil so that it can hold water, and helps plants grow faster and bigger!
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Compost Pile
Flickr - Alan Levine
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Vermicomposting:
Vermicomposting is the method of using earthworms to speed up the process of composting in a compost bin or pile.
- The worms consume the compost materials and turn them into worm castings (poop).
- These castings can be spread in gardens to fertilize (feed) plants and help the plants grow bigger.
- The worms also help break up the soil with their tunnels so that the soil can hold more water.
- Vermicomposting shows how important worms are to the health of our ecosystem because they help break down materials into things that plants can use.
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Vermicompost
Dreamstime
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Follow these rules when composting: |
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| Safe to add: |
Do not add: |
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Dreamstime
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- Diseased plants
- Fat
- Fruit pulp
- Magazines
- Meat
- Milk
- Oil
- Perennial weeds
- Plastic
- Weeds with seed heads
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| Other Species in the Habitat |
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There are many microscopic organisms, like bacteria, that you cannot see with your naked eye in your log decomposition station.
There are also larger organisms like fungus (mold and mustrooms) and invertebrates (beetles, snails, millipedes, worms, pillbugs, and others).
You may also find organisms that feed on decomposers such as salamanders and spiders. |
Slimy Salamander
Wikimdeia - Greg Schechter
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SOURCES
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Wildlife Tag
