Imagine a thick Irish hedgerow full of flowers, bees and birds. One season it is cut away to make a wider field edge. What do you think happens first to the living things that used that hedge?

Hands up: which living thing do you think would feel the change soonest, and why?

With your group, look at the hedgerow food web at the top of your Investigation Journal page. We will study example before-and-after counts for a typical Irish farm hedgerow removal.

For each row, notice the number before the hedge was removed and the number after. Talk quietly: which drops match your prediction? Which surprise you?

We will put the card numbers into the interactive table on the board so the whole class can see the pattern.

Six rows from the cards appear in the table. We type the Before count and the After count for each one. Then we show the bar chart of the after counts and compare it with the table.

Now use the hedgerow food web on your Investigation Journal page and the counts together. Start at the hedge plants. Follow the arrows to the living things that feed on them or use them for shelter. Then follow on to what eats those animals.

In your group, agree one knock-on chain: which link is likely to feel the change first, what might feel it next, and what evidence from the numbers supports that order. Be ready to share your chain with the class.