Organism Roles
This type of organism makes its own food using energy from the sun
Producer
This is the original source of energy for almost every food web on Earth.
The sun
This is the percentage of energy that actually moves from one trophic level to the next.
10%
If the population of Krill (a primary consumer) decreases, this will happen to the population of the Cod that eat them.
Cod population will decrease
This group of organisms, including bacteria and fungi, is responsible for recycling matter back into the soil.
Decomposers
In a food web diagram, the arrows always point toward the organism that is doing this.
Receiving the energy (or eating)
This trophic level is always found at the very bottom (base) of an energy pyramid.
Producers
If a top predator is removed from a forest, the population of its prey will likely do this.
Prey population will increase
An animal that eats both plants and other animals, like the Golden Lion Tamarin, is known as this.
Omnivore
Unlike matter, which is recycled, energy is said to move in this type of path
a One-way path (or flows in one direction)
if the producers in a field have 10,000 units of energy, this is how much energy the Primary Consumers will receive.
1,000 units
If all decomposers were removed from an ecosystem, this would eventually stop being available for producers to grow
Nutrients
This type of consumer sits at the very top of the energy pyramid and has the least amount of energy available to it.
Tertiary consumer
Most of the energy that is NOT passed to the next trophic level is released into the environment as this.
Heat
If the producers have 10,000 units of energy, this is how much the Secondary Consumers will receive.
100 units
In a salt marsh (Plankton -->Shrimp --> Fish --> Heron), the Shrimp is considered this specific level of consumer.
Primary consumer
If a mushroom is growing on a fallen log, it is performing this vital "loop-closing" function for the biosphere.
recycling mushrooms or matter
This model shows the complex, overlapping feeding relationships in an entire ecosystem, rather than just a single path.
Food web
An energy pyramid is shaped like a triangle because there is a decrease in both available energy and this as you move up.
population size & biomass
In a salt marsh (Plankton -->Shrimp --> Fish --> Heron), the Heron is considered this specific level of consumer.
Tertiary consumer