Energy Flow In Ecosystems

Where does all energy in an ecosystem come from? How does it flow?

energy comes from the sun or inorganic compounds and then it flows in one direction to autographs, then heterotrophs

Define food chain

a series of steps in which organisms transfer energy by eating and being eaten

Define and draw a pyramid of numbers

based on the number of individual organisms at each trophic level

Define trophic level

each step in a food chain or food web

Draw a food chain

grass -> grasshopper -> frog -> snake -> fox -> vulture

List the type of consumers and what they eat

herbivores: only plants, carnivores: only animals, omnivores: both plants and animals, detritivores: plant and animals remains and other dead matter, decomposers: break down organic matter

Examples of producers on land, water, tidal marshes

land: plants, water: algae, tidal marshes: cyanobacteria

Define consumer. What else are these called?

organisms that can only acquire energy from other organisms, also called heterotrophs

Define producer. What else are these called?

organisms that capture energy from the sunlight or chemicals and use that energy to produce food, also called autotrophs

Define and draw an energy pyramid

shows the relative amount of energy contained with each trophic level in a food chain or food web

Explain the 10% rule

the hitch: only about 10% of the energy available with one trophic level is transferred to organisms at the next trophic level

Define and draw a biomass pyramid

the total amount of living tissue in each trophic level

Define food web

to represent the complex feeding relationship in an ecosystem and to link all food chains in an ecosystem together

In a typical ecosystem which trophic level typical has the highest number? The least? Why is this the case?

typically the highest number is the autotrophs, and the lowest number is the top of the heterotrophs. This is because big heterotrophs eat more so less of them can feed off of one big group of little organisms