Lo1.g - Food Chains

Why do the different species in an ecosystem depend on one another to feed upon each other

To survive

In every ecosystem there are many different

Food chains

What do food chains show

What is eating what in an ecosystem

What do the arrows show

• point to what consumes the previous organism

• the movement of energy between plants and animals

What is always at the start of a food chain

The sun

After the sun..

The produces, which gets its energy from the sun and is therefore a green plant

What comes after the producer?

The primary consumer, which eats the green plant as is a herbivore (rabbit)

What comes after the primary consumer?

The secondary consumer, which eats the primary consumer as is therefore a carnivore (fox)

What comes after the secondary consumer?

The tertiary consumer which feeds on both plants and animals and is therefore an omnivore

What is the final stage in any food chain

The decomposed

What do the decomposers do

• They feed on dead plants and animals by breaking down dead decaying matter

• They complete the final breakdown of an organism so it’s matter can be recycled back into the soil

What do decomposes look like

They are microscopic and cannot be seen (bacteria)