WLITC - Energy Flow in Ecosystems

Front

What is the role of producers in an ecosystem?

Back

Producers are organisms that make their own food through photosynthesis or chemosynthesis, forming the base of the food web.

Front

What is a food web?

Back

A food web is a complex network of feeding relationships among various organisms in an ecosystem, showing how energy and nutrients flow.

Front

What is the energy transfer efficiency between trophic levels?

Back

Typically, only about 10% of energy is transferred from one trophic level to the next in a food web.

Front

Define a consumer in an ecosystem.

Back

Consumers are organisms that cannot produce their own food and rely on consuming other organisms for energy.

Front

What is a decomposer?

Back

Decomposers are organisms that break down dead or decaying organic material, recycling nutrients back into the ecosystem.

Front

What is a trophic level?

Back

A trophic level is a position in a food chain or food web, defined by how an organism obtains its energy.

Front

Give an example of a predator/prey relationship.

Back

An example of a predator/prey relationship is a mountain lion hunting a deer.

Front

What are first-level consumers?

Back

First-level consumers are organisms that eat producers; they are also known as herbivores.

Front

What is the significance of the energy pyramid?

Back

The energy pyramid illustrates the distribution of energy among trophic levels, showing that energy decreases as it moves up the pyramid.

Front

What is the difference between a food chain and a food web?

Back

A food chain is a linear sequence of organisms where each is eaten by the next, while a food web is a more complex network of interconnected food chains.