4.2 Feeding relationships Flashcards
decomposers
organisms that release enzymes which speed up the breakdown of dead plant and animal material e.g. bacteria and fungi
decomposition
the breakdown of dead materials into simpler organic matter that can eventually be absorbed by plants
the rate at which it occurs is affected by temperature, water and oxygen content
energy transfers
the flow of energy from one trophic level to the next
why is not all energy transferred from one trophic level to the next?
not all is eaten
not all is digested
soe energy is used in respiration/movement of the organism
lost in excretory products
food chain
shows the feeding relationships between organisms and the stages of biomass transfer
the arrows represent the flow of energy between organisms
food web
network of food chains that shows how energy can flow in different ways and that animals can feed on more than one organism
primary consumer
herbivores that consume producers in a food chain
producers
photosynthetic organisms at the start of the food chain that provide biomass for all the organisms in the food chain
pyramid of biomass
a pyramid, with each layer of the pyramid representing the amount of mass of living material at each trophic level of a food chain
bigger at bottom, smaller at top
pyramid of number
a pyramid showing the numbers of each organism at each trophic level
often looking similar to the pyramid of biomass, but if the producer is large and small in number, like a tree, can look quite different
quadrat
a square grid used to sample populations and to determine abundance and distribution of organisms in an ecosystem
quaternary consumers
carnivores that consume tertiary consumers
secondary consumers
carnivores that consume primary consumers
tertiary consumers
carnivores that consume secondary consumers
top carnivore/apex predator
an organism in a food chain/web that is not consumed by another
