Food Chain

Question 1

What are the 4 main parts to the food chain

Answer 1

1- sun

2- producers - harness suns energy to make food ( autotrophs)

3- consumers - organisms that eat something else (Hetrotrophs)

4- saprobiants - decomposing bacteria and fungi convert dead matter into gasses

Question 2

What’s biomass

Answer 2

Total mass of living material

Question 3

What’s Calorimetry

Answer 3

Used to calculate chemical energy in store using dry biomass

Question 4

What’s principle

Answer 4

Heat required to raise 1g by 1•c
We can then look at temp rise and use volumes to calculate energy transferred

Question 5

What is Gross primary productivity (GPP)

Answer 5

Total quantity of chemical energy store in plant biomass

Question 6

What is Net primary productivity (NPP)

Answer 6

Chemical energy store left after respiratory losses

NPP= GPP - R

Question 7

Why do energy losses occur ?

Answer 7

1- some of organism not consumed

2- lost as heat

3- lost as faeces or urine

Question 8

NPP equation

Answer 8

NPP = I - ( F + R )

I = energy in ingested food
F = energy lost from faeces and urine
R = energy lost in respiration