Energy Flow in Ecosystems

Vocabulary Producer-An organism that can make its own food. Consumer-An organism that obtains energy by feeding on other organisms. Herbivore-Consumer that eats only plants. Carnivore-Consumer that eats only animals. Omnivore-A consumer that eats both plants and animals.

Vocabulary Scavenger-A carnivore that feeds on the bodies of dead organisms. Decomposer-An organism that breaks down wastes and dead organisms. Food Chain-A series of events in which on organism eats another. Food Web-The pattern of overlapping food chains in an ecosystem. Energy Pyramid-A diagram that shows the amount of energy that moves from one feeding level to another in a food web.

Energy Roles An organism’s energy role is determined by how it obtains energy. An organism may be a producer, consumer, or decomposer.

Producers Plants and algae are able to capture light energy and store it as food energy. The process by which autotrophs capture and store energy is: – Photosynthesis.

Consumers Cannot make own food. Feed on other organisms to obtain energy.

Four types of Consumers 1.Herbivores 2.Carnivores 3.Omnivores 4.Scavengers

What type of consumer? Catfish-Scavenger

What type of consumer? Crows - Omnivores

What type of consumer? Spider-Carnivore

What type of consumer? Caterpillar-Herbivore

Decomposers-Return raw materials to the environment. Bacteria Fungi

Food Chain One possible path through which energy can flow through an ecosystem Producer-Grass seed First Level Consumer-Mouse Second Level Consumer-Hawk

Food Web Most producers and consumers are part of many food chains. A Food web consists of many overlapping food chains.

Food Webs Producers- Plants First Level Consumers: Herbivores Second Level Consumers: May be Carnivores or Omnivores Third Level Consumers: Carnivores

Energy Pyramids The most energy is available at the producer level.

Energy Pyramids At each level in the pyramid, there is less available energy than at the level below.

Energy Pyramids Only about 10 percent of the energy at one level is transferred to the next higher level. The other 90 percent is used by the organism or lost as heat to the environment.

Energy Pyramids The energy in the producer level limits the number of consumers the ecosystem can support. As a result there are usually few organisms at the highest level.