Energy Losses and Trophic Levels

when a consumer ingests an organism…

not all the chemical energy in the consumers food is transferred

how much energy is lost to the environment

90%

can consumers digets all the food they ingest

no, cellulose in plants for example is egested as faeces

how is enegy lost to the environment as well

through heat

how is heat lost to the environment

during cellular respiration when when ATP is used and other cellular processes

where is the heat lost to the environment

at evert trophic level and during decomposition

what are trophic levels

a way of classifying organisms by their feeding relationships with other organisms in the same ecosystem

how can energy flow be represented

pyramids of energy

what is the energy which moves between trophic levels units

j or kJ/year/m²

what are the three main reasons for energy loss

• incomplete consumption

• incomplete digestion

• cellular respiration

what is number of trophic levels limited by

how much energy enters the ecosystem