Trophic Levels Flashcards
what is the energy flow in biological systems
1) Light energy from the sun
2) chemical energy in plants
3) chemical energy in animals
4) energy in decomposing matter
what do food chains show
food chains show the energy transfer within a community
what is a producer
a producer is an organism that makes it own organic nutrients
what is a consumer
a consumer is an organism that gets its energy by feeding off other organisms
what is a herbivore
an organism that gets its nutrients from a plant based diet
what is a carnivore
a carnivore is an organism that gets its energy from consuming other animals
it can only ever be either a secondary or tertiary consumer
what are at the base of all food chains
plants and algae
what are at on the second trophic level
primary consumers - which are herbivores - are on the second trophic level
what are on the third trophic level
carnivores - which eat herbivores - are on the third trophic level
what are on the fourth trophic level
carnivores that eat other carnivores - tertiary consumers - are on the fourth trophic level
what is an apex predator
an apex predator is a predator which is at the top of the food chain and doesn’t naturally get eaten by anything else
what’s the role of decomposers
decomposers are responsible for recycling organic matter
give examples of decomposers
1) Bacteria
2) Fungi
what do decomposers do and what is the name of the process in which they are involved in
1) decomposers break down dead material using enzymes
2) the decomposers use this broken down material as a food source and for their own growth
3) the nutrients are then brought back into the living food chain
this process is called decay
what are the 4 trophic levels
the four trophic levels are
1) Producers
2) Primary consumers
3) Secondary consumers
4) Tertiary consumers
