1. Ecology Ch 4 Section 4.3 Energy in the Ecosystem

2. Energy Comes mostly from the sun through producers –Photosynthesis Passed on to consumers Competition for food/energy shape the ecosystem

3. Plants and energy absorb less than 1% of the sunlight Still able to make 170 billion metric tons of food/year Energy is used to make cells – biomass –Represents the energy available for the next trophic level Most of the energy NOT used to make biomass

4. 10% Law Most of the energy is used to make heat and move the organism Only 10% is used to make biomass at the next level Reason there is only 4-5 trophic levels in an ecosystem