Use these cards to demonstrate the richness of the biodiversity of the River Dee. Each animal and plant has a simplied version of its diet listed so that each living thing can connect to the others it is related to in the food web.

Cut out the cards along the black lines so that they can be moved about. When you’re comfy at the kkitchen table start to put the cards together and draw arrows to connect the plants and animals to the food they eat and what eats them. You can place the cards on a large sheet of white paper to draw the arrows on or you can draw them directly onto the table using a whiteboard marker (which washes off). The cards are colour coded for herbivores, omnivores and carnivores which I have included in the questions section as a way to extend your child’s understanding of the biodiversity of the River Dee. If you think you need a re-minder on food chains and webs the River Dee Trust has a powerpoint about food webs on its website.

At the end of the document are ecological factors and invasive species (American mink, giant hogweed and himalayan balsam) to be added once the food web is complete. Add them into the food web to better understand the impact of these on the biodiversity of the river.

1. Once the food web is complete here are some questions you might like to explore with your children.

What do you think the different colours represent?

SSome of the cards don’t have a colour, do you know why? You may have to learn a little about the life cycle of a salmon for this.

There are three cards here that are all the same animal, can you work out which ones?

Which animal or plant is most important in this food web?

WWhat is an animal that isn’t eaten by anything called?

2. It’s time to introduce the invasive species:

Start with the American Mink - remove the animals that it affects. Then remove the animals thanimals that are connected to those ani-mals. Can you see how a single animal being added to the ecosystem can affect lots of other animals? How many living things are affected?

What is affected by the introduction of the invasive plants?

What should we do about invasive plants and animals? Is it OK to kill them? This is a good opportunity for a class discussion.

3. Use the cards for ooding, farm runoff, poaching and hydropower to explore the effects these have on the living things in the river.

Using the food web cards

Osprey

SwanMallard DuckKingsher

CormorantOtter Algae

Eats:ParrBrown troutSmolt

Eats:Brown troutParrAdult salmon

Eaten by:

Eats:Brown troutAdult SalmonSmolt

Eaten by:

Eaten by:Foxes

Mayy larvae

SmoltEats:Freshwater shrimpMayy larvaeCaddisy

Eaten by:Common sealCormorantGoosander

Common seal

Goldeneye HeronEats:Freshwater shrimpMayy Larvae

Is eaten by:Pike (duckings)Pine martensFoxes

Caddisy

Eats:algae

Eaten by:Brown troutParr

Eats:FrogsParrSticklebacks

Eaten by:FoxesCrows (eggs)

Eats:ParrSticklebacksFreshwater

Eaten by:Foxes

Eats:Plants

Eats:PlantsMayy larvae

Eaten by:FoxesCrows (eggs)

Eaten by:FoxesCrows(eggs)

Eats:Brown TroutSalmon

Eaten by:

Eats:Algae

Eaten by:FishFrogsGoldeneye

Eats:The sun

© Cyril Bennet© Cyril Bennet

Eaten by:Fresh water pearl musselBrook lampreyMayy larvae

FrogEats:MayyInsects

Eaten by:HeronGoldeneyeOtterPike

Brown troutEats:MayyCaddisySticklebackFreshwater shrimp

Eaten by:OtterHeronGoosanderOsprey

Eats:AlgaePlankton

ParrEaten by:HeronsOttersGoosanders

Eats:MayyCaddisyInsectsFreshwater shrimp

Fresh water pearl mussel

Eats: planktonalgae

Eaten by:Otters

Eats:The sun

Eaten by:DuckSwanMinnow

Plants Eats:GoldeneyeHeron KingsherSwan

Eaten by:Fox Pine MartenEats:Bird eggsFrogsInsects

Eaten by:Foxes (occasionally)

Eats:ParrDucklings

Eaten by:OspreyOtter

Pike

SticklebackEats:Insects AlgaePlants

Eaten by:KingsherHeronBrown trout

Eaten by:OttersHeronGoosanders

Brook Lamprey

Eats:

Adult salmon

Eaten by:OttersOsprey

Goosander

Eats:Brook LampreyParrBrown Trout

Eaten by:Foxes

American Mink is an invasive species with a huge appetite. Mink used to be farmed in the UK for their fur and some have escaped or were released and now they are found all across the UK.

Eats: Water volesBird eggsFish

Eaten by:

Crow Water vole

Eats:Plants

Eaten by:PikeFoxesOtters

Freshwater shrimpEats:Plants

Eaten by:Goldeneye KingsherParrBrown trout

Eats:Birds eggs

Eaten by:fox

Giant Hogweed

This huge plant grows in very large quantities on the river bank. There are several reasons why this invasive plant causes trouble for our food web.

LaLarge amounts of it growing can affect the stability of the river bank which means that when there is a ood or a lot of rain the bank might wash away. This affects kingshers, water voles and otters which all need the bank to rear their young.

IIt also causes shade on the river which affects the ability of algae to grow.

Giant hogweed can also be very dan-gerous because the sap causes burns. NEVER TOUCH GIANT HOGWEED.

Himalayan Balsam

TThis is another invasive plant that grows in huge quantities on the riverbank. The victorians thought that this plant was very pretty so they put seeds all over the place and it grows very well here.

BBecause it grows so well it takes over and affects the ability of other plants to grow. It also creates shade on the river which affects the ability of algae to grow.

© Cyril Bennet

Farm runoffFarm run off is when chemicals that farmers use on their land nds its way into the river. Farm runoff can be things like weed killer or fertilizer as well as animal poo. These substances affect the balance of the river and can kill many different animals that rely on clean water to live.

Farm runoff affects:FFreshwater pearl musselFishPlantsInsects

Poaching

PPoaching is when someone illegally removes an animal from the river. The most common type of poaching on the river is salmon and freshwater pearl mussel. On the Dee all the salmon that is caught must be put back into the river alive so that the population remains the same. When someone is poaching illegally they do not return the salmon to the river. Freshwater pearl mussels are a protected species and even taking pictures of them has to be done with a licence. Freshwater pearl mussels some-times make pearls and poachers might kill hundreds of mussels to nd one pearl.

FloodingFlooding happens regularly on the river and is part of the natural cycle of the life of the river. However, sometimes ooding is very severe and can cause huge damage to the ecosystem. Some things can make ooding worse, if the banks are not stable then more silt will be washed into the river and can suffocate animals that live in the river bed.

AAll animals are affected by ooding but it can be particularly dangerous for:Fish eggsWater volesKingshers

Hydropower

Hydropower is very important to Scotland. With hydropower we are able to create renewable energy using the power of water. However, a new hydropower source may affect the river in negative ways and so we have to be careful about where we place it. Fish are particularly vulnerable to hydropower, especially parr when they turn into smolts and start heading out to sea.