10.3

Question 1

Trophic Levels

Answer 1

Producers, primary consumers, secondary consumers, tertiary consumers, and decomposers.

Question 2

Autotroph vs. Heterotroph

Answer 2

Autotroph: Self Feeding
Heterotroph: Feed on others

Question 3

Herbivore vs. Omnivore vs. Carnivore vs. Detritivore

Answer 3

Herbivores primarily eat plants, omnivores consume both plants and animals, carnivores eat other animals, and detritivores consume dead organic matter.

Question 4

Keystone species

Answer 4

A keystone species is a species that has a disproportionately large impact on its ecosystem, even if it’s not the most abundant species.

Question 5

Trophic cascade

Answer 5

A trophic cascade describes the indirect effects that occur when a species is removed from a food web, leading to a ripple effect through multiple trophic levels.

Question 6

Describe differences between food web and trophic cascade diagrams

Answer 6

Food webs show the complex feeding relationships and energy flow between organisms in an ecosystem, while trophic cascades illustrate the ripple effects of changes in one trophic level on other levels.

Question 7

Identifying trophic levels of organisms in a food web

Answer 7

In a food web, trophic levels categorize organisms based on their feeding position and energy source. The first level consists of producers (like plants), followed by primary consumers (herbivores), secondary consumers (carnivores that eat herbivores), and so on.