Energy flows through ecosystems. Chapter 1 Section 3

Living things capture and release energy. Producer: an organism that captures energy and stores it in food as chemical energy Most energy enters an ecosystem through photosynthesis In water – photosynthetic bacteria and algae

Living things capture and release energy. Consumers: organisms that get their energy by eating other organisms Primary consumers eat the producers Secondary consumers eat the primary consumers Tertiary consumers eat the secondary consumers

Living things capture and release energy. Decomposers: organisms that break down dead plant and animal matter into simpler compounds Use the last bit of energy from once-living matter Return matter to soil or water where it may be used again and again

Models help explain feeding relationships. Food Chain: describes the feeding relationship between a producer and a single chain of consumers in an ecosystem

Models help explain feeding relationships. Producer cattails Primary Consumer caterpillar Secondary Consumer frog Tertiary consumer heron

Models help explain feeding relationships. Food Web: model of the feeding relationships between many different consumers and producers in an ecosystem Contains many overlapping and interconnected food chains

Models help explain feeding relationships.

Available energy decreases as it moves through an ecosystem. Energy pyramid: model that shows the amount of energy available at each feeding level of an ecosystem Energy is lost as it moves up the pyramid so each level gets smaller

Available energy decreases as it moves through an ecosystem.