B16. Food chains/webs and nutrient cycles Flashcards
What do food chains show?
Food chains show the transfer of energy through a food chain.
What type of organism is always the start of a food chain.
All food chains begin with an organism that can photosynthesise (i.e. a green plant, algae or cyanobacteria) which makes food (glucose) by photosynthesis.
What is the name given to each level of the food chain?
Each level of a food chain is called a trophic level.
How do decomposers form part of some food chains?
Decomposers are bacteria and fungi which break down dead plant and animal matter.
Decomposers secrete enzymes onto the surface of the dead organisms
The matter is broken down into soluble food molecules, which are then absorbed into the microorganism by diffusion.
What type of consumer is the organism that eats the producer?
Primary consumer
What type of consumer is the organism that eats the primary consumer?
Secondary consumer
What type of consumer is the organism that eats the secondary consumer?
Tertiary consumer
What are apex predators and give an example.
Apex predators are carnivores with no predators. You will find them at the top of a food chain e.g. killer whale
Distinguish between predators and prey
Apredatoris an animal that hunts and eats other animals, and thepreyis the animal that gets eaten by the predator.
List some key adaptations of good predators
Camouflage, speed, agility, sharp claws and teeth, stealth, enhanced senses, monocular vision etc.
List some key adaptations of prey animals
Camouflage, warning colouration, mimicry, speed, agility, binocular vision, protective body armor, group defensive, chemical defences
Describe the pattern of a predator-prey graph
In a stable community the numbers of predators and
prey rise and fall in cycles.
This is called a cyclical pattern
What is the difference between a food chain and food web?
Afood webis a network of interconnected food chains.
They also showinterdependence- how the change in one population can affect others within the food web.
Describe simply what the water cycle is.
The water cycle is the continuous movement of water between the atmosphere, land, oceans, and living organisms.
List the main stages of the water cycle
Evaporation, condensation, (cooling), precipitation, percolation, transpiration & respiration