1. Food chains, food webs and the transfer of energy

2. Producers aka Autotrophs
A group of organisms that can use the energy in sunlight to convert water and carbon dioxide into Glucose.
Energy for all ecological systems begin with producers
Example: plants and algae

3. Producers can be...
Phototrophic or chemotrophic VS

4. Consumers aka Heterotrophs
Organisms that do not make their own food
They must consume other organisms in order to live
Example: rabbits, deer, mushrooms

5. Scavengers Feed on the tissue of dead organisms (plants and animals)
Examples: vultures, crows, shrimp

6. Herbivores
Feed on plants only
Examples: cows, elephants, giraffes

7. Carnivores
Feed on only meat
Lions, tigers, sharks

8. Omnivores
Feed on both plants and meat
Examples: bears and humans

9. Decomposers
Absorb any dead material and break it down to return nutrients to the environment
Examples: bacteria and mushrooms

10. Transfer of Energy
When a zebra eats the grass, it does not obtain all of the energy the grass has
When a lion eats a zebra, it does not get all of the energy of the zebra

11. Transfer of Energy
The two previous examples of energy transfer show that no organism EVER gets all of the energy from the organism it just ate
Only 10% of the energy from one trophic level is transferred, the other 90% is lost
Heat, energy to live!

12. Trophic Levels
Energy moves from one organism to another when it is eaten
Each step in this transfer of energy is known as a trophic level
The main trophic levels are producers, consumers and decomposers

13. Food Chains
The energy flow from one trophic level to the other is known as a food chain
It involves:
Primary consumers – eat producers
Secondary consumers – eat the primary consumers
Tertiary consumers – eat the secondary consumers
Decomposers – bacteria and fungi that break down dead organisms and recycle the material back into the environment

14. Food Chain
Marine food chain:

15. Food Web Most organisms eat more than just one organism
When more organisms are involved it is called a food web

16. Food Web
The arrows in a food web show the direction of energy flow

17. Ecological Pyramid
Shows the relationship between consumers and producers at different trophic levels in an ecosystem
Shows amount of energy at each level

18. Ecological Pyramid mh