Topic 1.11: Food Webs and Food Chains Flashcards

Vocabulary flashcards based on Topic 1.11 covering food chains, food webs, trophic levels, and trophic cascades.

Food Chain

A single linear pathway showing the flow of energy and matter from one organism to another.

Food Web

A network formed by at least two connected food chains that share a common link or organism.

Predation

The act of one organism using another organism as an energy source, which includes herbivores eating plants.

Food Web Arrows

Symbols that show the direction of energy and matter movement, pointing directly to the organism taking in the energy and matter.

Primary Consumer

An organism that eats producers for energy, such as a rabbit or grasshopper eating grass.

Secondary Consumer

An organism that eats primary consumers for energy, such as an owl eating a rabbit or a robin eating a grasshopper.

Tertiary Consumer

An organism that eats secondary consumers for energy, such as an owl eating a robin.

Trophic Cascade

A ripple effect down through the lower trophic levels caused by a dramatic increase or decrease in a top predator population.

Defoliation

The loss of vegetation in an area, which can occur due to a large increase in herbivores following the loss of a top predator.