1. Assignment #2 Energy Flow in Ecosystems
Mrs. McCarthy
Biology
Monday, August 27, 2018

2. Trophic Levels- a group of organisms that have the same source of energy
Energy moves from one trophic level to the next
Food Chain- the path of energy through the trophic levels
Producer- capture energy from the sun (plants)
Consumer- obtain energy from producers, either directly or indirectly (animals)
Energy Flows from the previous source to the next one
Ex. FROM the sun TO the grass

4. C. Lowest trophic level contains producers
D. The second level contains primary consumers
1. Herbivores- animals that eat producers
E. The third level contains secondary consumers
1. Carnivores- animals that eat herbivores
2. Omnivores- animals that eat producers, herbivores, and carnivores
F. Some ecosystems have a fourth level that contains tertiary consumers (carnivores eat carnivores)

5. G. Detritivores (scavenger)- organisms that obtain their energy from organic wastes and dead bodies
1. Examples: Turkey Vulture, Crabs
H. Decomposers- cause decay
1. Examples: Fungus, Bacteria

6. II. Food Web- Energy does not flow in a straight line, but forms an interconnected group of chains, or food web
A. Animals feed from different levels in a food chain
B. Use the food web to answer the following questions:
1. What eats the frog?
2. What does the Fox eat?
3. Name one herbivore.
4. Name one Carnivore.
5. What would happen to this food web if grasshoppers die out?
6. What would happen to the population of rabbits if both the fox and snake populations were to decrease?
Energy flows from the previous organism to the next one.
Ex. FROM the frog TO the Snake
FROM the plant TO the grasshopper

7. III. Energy Transfer
A. As you go up trophic levels (producer primary consumer secondary consumer), organisms lose energy
B. During every transfer of energy within an ecosystem, energy is lost as heat
C. An ecosystem can support more primary consumers than tertiary consumers
D. Biomass- the dry weight of tissue and other organic matter found in a specific ecosystem
1. Examples: coal, garbage, leaves, etc
E. The number of organisms in a trophic level does not equal the amount of energy at that level
** write this in: Biomass and trophic levels are directly related, the more organisms you have in each trophic level, the more biomass you will have. In other words, your biomass pyramid and energy pyramid should look similar in size and shape**

8. 1. Fill in the Blanks using the following: tertiary consumer, primary consumer, producer, secondary consumer 2. Show, with an arrow, the direction of energy flow in this energy pyramid 3. Label which levels would be carnivores and herbivores
Carnivore
Tertiary Consumer
Carnivore
Energy Flow
Secondary Consumer
Herbivore
Primary Consumer
Producer
Energy Pyramid