is iron an ion?

Answer 1

Short answer: yes it can be, but it isn't always.

Long answer.
Iron is an element of the periodic table. It is a metal. Like all metals, it can build positive loaded ions. Why? An atom has protons and neutrons in the nucleus, and a shell of electrons around it, and it has the same amount of protons and electrons (iron has 26 protons and 26 electrons). It can happen that an iron atom looses 2 or 3 electrons from its shell, and then you have an iron ion. This is because the last 3 ions of iron are not holding as tight to the nucleus as the other ones. This happens by letting the iron make a chemical reaction with something else, and then solve the product in water. In the reaction product, the 2 or 3 electrons build "bridges" between the iron atoms and the atoms of the other reagent. When you solve it in water, the water breaks these bridges at the "wrong" place, and the electrons stay with the other reagent, building some negative ions, and the iron atoms left with 2 electrons left are positive ions. So you can have iron as ions, but that is not the standard meaning of the word "iron". Your question is like "Is a duck a parent?" Some ducks are, some are not, you can make convert one to the other, and when you are talking of ducks in general, you are seldom interested in their parental status.

Appendix: I see your question is in category "biology". When a biologist is interested in iron, she is usually interested in iron as a trace element needed by living organisms. It is a part of chemical compounds needed for plant life (Chlorophyl, the stuff that makes leaves green and that lets plants use solar energy) and some animal life (hemoglobyn, the stuff that makes blood red, without it we wouldn't be able to transport oxygen from our lungs to our cells). In living bodies, these compounds are present in a solution, for example hemoglobyn is solved in blood. So in the places that interest biologists, iron is usually found as ions.

Answer 2

Iron Ions

Answer 3

It is an element, but it can be an ion. For example iron the element (Fe) could be the cation Fe++ or even Fe+++

You have the same thing with sodium the element (Na) and sodium the ion (Na+), or potassium the element (K) and potassium the ion (K+). Get the idea?

Answer 4

Pure iron (Fe) is a metal. Naturally elemental iron exists only at the center of the earth, because it is readily oxidized to form iron oxide. When it is in a compound, it is ion: ferrous sulphate, ferric chloride.