Part 2

 ENERGY  Where does all of the energy on planet earth come from?

 Plants  “Produce” their own food using energy from sun light  Autotrophs Auto = Self Troph = Food Examples; Plants, bacteria, algae

 Get their energy by eating other organisms  Heterotrophs Omnivore: Eat both Carnivore: Eat meat Herbivore: Eat plants

 Life creates a pyramid when converting energy  Each level is called a trophic level

 With every step in a Trophic Level:  Organisms loose 90% of their energy to heat  Only 10% of energy is passed on  Ex: an organism on one trophic level needs to eat 10x more than an organism one trophic level below Useable energy decreases from 1 trophic level to the next!

 Green plants (some bacteria & algae) that are able to make their own food  Lowest trophic level

 1 ° consumers are herbivores (plant eaters)  Ex: some insects, deer, or mice.

 2 ° consumers are carnivores (flesh eaters)  They feed on herbivores  Ex: Amphibians

 3 ° consumers are carnivores  Ex: snakes and hawks

 Omnivores eat both plants and animals  Ex: Bears and Humans

 Scavengers feed on dead organisms  Ex: earthworms, ants, and vultures.

 Detrivores break down organic matter  Recyclers: turn waste into materials for producers  Ex: bacteria and fungi

 Predators:  organisms which hunt and feed on others  Prey:  organisms that are eaten  To maintain balance in an ecosystem the Predator/prey interactions should not be disturbed

Part 3

 Food chain: (linear-start with producer and end with top predator)  a relationship of organisms that depend on each other for energy or food.  EX: algae is food for fish which are food for squid which are food for sharks.  Note: The arrows point to what the organism is eaten by, NOT what it eats!

 Food Web  a group of interrelated food chains  If one organism is removed, other organisms may be endangered or possibly die out.