1. Biology Chapter 2.2 Flow of Energy In an Ecosystem

2. Energy in an Ecosystem Organisms get energy through different ways. There are two types of organisms classified by how they get energy. – Autotrophs – Heterotrophs

3. Autotrophs Organisms that produce their own food. – This means they do not eat food. The food is made inside of the organism. – Plants are autotrophs.

4. Heterotophs Organisms that consume other organisms to get energy. – There are three types of heterotrophs. Herbivores – They only eat plants. Carnivores – They only eat meat. Omnivores – They eat both plants and meat. Detritivores – They eat fragments of dead matter in an ecosystem and return nutrients to the soil, air, and water.

5. Models of Energy Flow Ecologist use food chains and food webs to model how energy flows through the ecosystem. Trophic Level: each step in a food chain or food web.

6. Food Chains Food Chain: a simple model that shows how energy flows through an ecosystem. – It starts with autotrophs and moves to heterotrophs.

7. Food Webs Food Webs: a model representing the many interconnected food chains and pathways in which energy flows through a group of organisms.

8. Ecological Pyramids Ecological pyramid: a model that shows how energy flows through the ecosystem. Biomass: the total mass of living matter at each trophic level.