Energy Flow3-2

BiologyFlora

Producers

• Producers/autotrophs – organism that can capture energy from sunlight or chemicals and use it to produce it’s own food– Ex: plants– Photosynthesizing bacteria• Photosynthesis – process by which autotrophs use light

energy to power reactions that convert carbon dioxide and water into carbohydrates• Chemosynthesis – using chemical energy to produce

carbohydrates

Consumers

• Consumer/Heterotrophs – organisms that rely on other organisms for their source of energy– Types of consumers:• Herbivore – eat plants• Carnivore – eat meat• Omnivore – eats plants and meat• Detritivores – feed on plant and animal remains• Decomposers – break down organic matter

Feeding Relationships

• Sun/Inorganic Compounds → Autotrophs → Heterotrophs

• Food Chains – series of steps in which organisms transfer energy by eating and being eaten– Ex: grass → grasshopper → bird → coyote → bear• “Arrow goes where the food flows”• Ex: figure 3-7 – page 69

Cont. Feeding Relationships

• Each step of the food chain is known as a trophic level• Producers make up the first trophic level• Consumers make up the 2nd, 3rd, and higher trophic

levels• Each consumer depends on the trophic level below it

for energy.

• Food Web – network of interactions formed by feeding relationships among organisms in an ecosystem. Links all the food chains together.

Ecological Pyramids

• Ecological Pyramid – diagram that shows the relative amounts of energy or matter contained in each trophic level of a food chain or web.

Ecological Pyramids

– 3 types • Energy Pyramid – Shows the relative amount of energy

available at each trophic level– 10 % energy carry-over between each trophic level

• Biomass Pyramid – shows the total amount of living organic matter within a trophic level

• Pyramid of Numbers – Shows the number of individual organisms at each trophic level