TROPHIC LEVELS

Detritivore an organism that feeds off of dead plant or animal matter; breaks down organic material;

Organisms that produce their own energy PRODUCERS CONSUMERS AUTOTROPHS Organisms obtain energy from others HETEROTROPHS self food other

AUTOTROPH HETEROTROPH

Level 1

Level 2

Level 3

Level 4

Level 1 Level 4 Level 3 Level 2

TROPHIC LEVELS plants that create their own food LEVEL 1 PRODUCERS Herbivores that eat plants LEVEL 2 PRIMARY CONSUMERS

TROPHIC LEVELS Carnivores that eat herbivores LEVEL 3 SECONDARY CONSUMERS Carnivores that eat carnivores LEVEL 4 TERTIARY CONSUMERS

AUTOTROPH HETEROTROPH PRIMARY CONSUMER SECONDARY CONSUMER TERTIARY CONSUMER

Producers of Marshes Cattails Marsh Mallow

Primary Consumers in Marshes MUSKRAT eats mostly cattails WOOD DUCK eats seeds like those of the Swamp Marsh Mallow

Secondary Consumers in Marshes BLACK RAT SNAKE eats eggs of animals like wood duck SWAMP ALLIGATOR feeds on muskrats and ducks

Tertiary Consumers in Marshes Eat other animals in marsh including snake and sparrow Osprey

o The direction of the arrows in a chain shows… the flow of energy

o Predators eat organisms from higher trophic levels because they contain… more energy

o As energy flows through organisms… most of the energy is lost as heat

a sequence of organisms, each that uses the previous as a source of energy ENERGY CHAIN

a sequence of organisms, each that uses the previous as a source of energy shows the relative amounts of each of the organisms ENERGY PYRAMID

Connected energy chains ENERGY WEB

AUTOTROPH HETEROTROPH PRODUCER PRIMARY CONSUMER SECONDARY CONSUMER TERTIARY CONSUMER HERBI VORE CARNIVORE PLANTS OMNIVOREDETRITIVORE