Food Chains And Energy Transfer
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What is the main source of energy for all living things?
Radiation from the sun
What is the sunlight’s energy used for? What are producers
• used by green plants and algae during photosynthesis • to make new biomass • these are known as producers
What are consumers?
Consumers are organisms That obtain their energy By feeding on other organisms Rather than using the energy of sunlight directly
What are primary consumers?
• gains energy by eating producers • usually herbivores
What are secondary consumers?
• gains energy by eating primary consumers • usually carnivores but can be omnivores
What are tertiary consumers?
• gains energy by eating secondary consumers • usually predators but may be scavengers or parasites
What are detritivores?
• feed on detritus (dead or decaying material) • providing a bigger surface area for microorganisms • to use their digestive enzymes for decomposition
What are saprophytes?
Organisms that feed by releasing enzymes outside their body Digesting the food externally And then absorbing digested food
Define biomass
The total mass of living material in a specific area at a given time
Explain why the biomass data collected from an ecosystem could be unreliable
• involves killing the organisms • so only a small sample is taken • which is not representative of a whole population in an ecosystem
What is calorimetry?
• a practical technique used to estimate the chemical energy store • in a dry mass of organic matter