Photosynthesis
What are the three reactants of photosynthesis?
The Sun, Carbon Dioxide, and Water
Matter cannot be created or destroyed—what is this law called?
Conservation of Matter
What is an organism that makes its own food called?
A Producer
What is it called when two organisms both benefit?
Mutualism
Mushrooms grow on a dead tree. What is their role?
Decomposer
What are the two products of photosynthesis?
Glucose and Oxygen
What form of energy is stored in glucose?
Chemical energy
What is an organism that eats other organisms called?
A Consumer
What is it called when one organism benefits and the other is harmed?
Parasitism
A rabbit eats grass. Where did the rabbit get its energy from originally?
The Sun
This organelle is where photosynthesis takes place.
Chloroplast
When animals eat plants, matter moves from the plant to the animal. What is this an example of?
Matter cycling through organisms
What direction does energy flow in a food web? (3 steps)
Producers > Consumers > Decomposers
What is it called when one organism benefits and the other is unaffected?
Commensalism
A fox eats a rabbit. Name the roles of each organism.
Fox = consumer (predator), rabbit = consumer (prey)
What type of energy from the sun is used in photosynthesis?
Light Energy
***Explain how light energy becomes chemical energy.***
Light energy is converted into chemical energy through photosynthesis. Light > Glucose (chemical energy)
Chlorophyll absorbs sunlight, exciting electrons to produce temporary energy carriers (ATP and NADPH). These compounds then power the Calvin cycle, converting carbon dioxide into stable, high-energy chemical bonds in sugars (glucose), primarily powering plant growth.
What role do decomposers play in the food web?
They break down dead organisms and recycle nutrients
What interaction occurs when two organisms compete for the same resource?
Competition
Explain how photosynthesis, matter cycling, and energy flow are all connected.
Photosynthesis converts light to chemical energy, matter cycles through organisms, and energy flows through the food web
***Describe how carbon dioxide and water are rearranged during photosynthesis.***
They are chemically rearranged using light energy to form glucose (C₆H₁₂O₆) and oxygen (O₂)
***Explain how matter is conserved and cycles through organisms.***
Matter is conserved in ecosystems because atoms are never created or destroyed, only rearranged through chemical processes like photosynthesis and respiration. Matter cycles through organisms as nutrients pass from the environment to plants, through food chains, and return to the soil or atmosphere via waste and decomposition.
***Explain how energy flows through the food web.***
Energy flows in a one-way, linear direction through food webs, moving from producers to consumers and finally to decomposers, starting with sunlight. Energy is passed up trophic levels as organisms eat, with only ~10% transferring to the next level while ~90% is lost as heat, limiting food chain length.
A hawk eating a mouse is an example of what interaction?
Predation
***If plants disappeared, what would happen to the food web?***
Consumers would lose their energy source (producers) and the food web would collapse