Food Webs PDF

# Food Web - Interconnected food chains form a food web. - Comparatively larger than a food chain. - A single organism is consumed by many predators or it consumes several other organisms. A Food Web is shown with the following organisms: - Grasses - Mouse - Rabbit - Grasshopper - Frog - Bird - Ow...

# Food Web - Interconnected food chains form a food web. - Comparatively larger than a food chain. - A single organism is consumed by many predators or it consumes several other organisms. A Food Web is shown with the following organisms: - Grasses - Mouse - Rabbit - Grasshopper - Frog - Bird - Owl - Hawk - Snake - Fox # Fast fact: - Xylophages eat wood. Termites and bark beetles. - Coprophages eat animal feces. Dung beetles and flies. Geophages eat earth, such as clay or soil. Parrot, elephants, squirrels. - Palynivores eat pollen. Honeybees and some butterflies. - Lepidophages are fish that eat the scales of other fish. Piranha and some catfish. - Mucophages eat mucus. Some microorganisms. # Energy Flow and the 10% Rule - At each trophic level, approximately 90% of the energy is lost, mostly as heat and metabolic waste. - 10% Rule: Only about 10% of the energy from one level is passed on to the next. An Energy Pyramid is showing the above described facts. # Conservation Implications - **Why It Matters:** Understanding trophic levels helps us manage and protect ecosystems. - **Conservation Strategies:** Preserving top predators, protecting habitat diversity, and limiting human impact on ecosystems. - **Real-World Application:** Sustainable fishing practices to prevent overfishing of apex predators. The image shows an example of the importance of biodiversity. # Ecological Pyramids - Graphical representations of the trophic structure ecosystem. - **Types:** - Pyramid of Number - Pyramid of Biomass - Pyramid of Productivity # Pyramid of Numbers An image showing a pyramid of numbers with: - Plants - Mice - Snake - Hawk # Upright Pyramid of Biomass in a Terrestrial Ecosystem An image showing a pyramid of biomass with: - Producers - Herbivores - Primary Carnivores - Top Carnivores # Inverted Pyramid in an Aquatic Ecosystem An image showing an inverted pyramid of biomass with: - Producers - Herbivores - Carnivores # Pyramid of Productivity An image showing a pyramid of productivity with: - Primary producers - Primary consumers - Secondary consumers - Tertiary consumers # Trophic Levels - Decrease in biomass: - Producers - Primary consumers - Secondary consumers - Tertiary consumers - Quaternary consumers - Lost energy as heat: - 100% - 10% - 1% - 0.1% - 0.01% - An image showing the above described facts with different organisms at each trophic level. # Types of Food Web representation - **Topological Webs:** Indicate a feeding relationship. - **Flow Webs:** Bio-energetic webs, or flow webs, include information of the strength of the feeding interaction An image is showing a food web with: - Grass - Grasshopper - Frog - Mouse - Rabbit - Fox - Owl - Hawk - Snake - Bird # Significance of Food Chain - Helps in understanding the feeding relationship and interaction between organisms and the ecosystem. - Help in understanding the mechanism of energy flow and circulation of matter in the ecosystem. - Helps to understand the movement of toxic substances and problems associated with biological magnification in the ecosystem. # Types of Food Chain - **Grazing food chain:** - Starts with green plants, passes through herbivores, and then to carnivores. - In a grazing food chain, energy in the lowest trophic level is acquired from photosynthesis. - **Detritus food chain:** - Begins with dead organic material. - Primary consumers like fungi, bacteria, protozoans, and so on are detritivores which feed on detritus. - Food energy passes into decomposers and detritivores, which are further eaten by smaller organisms like carnivores like maggots that become a meal for bigger carnivores like frogs, snakes, and so on. # Trophic Level 5 and Beyond: Apex Predators - The highest level in the food chain, often not eaten by other predators. - Killer whales, large crocodiles, some big cats (e.g., tigers). - Apex predators are vital for ecosystem stability as they control populations and help maintain biodiversity # Trophic Level 4: Tertiary Consumers (Top Predators) - Predators that consume secondary consumers and are at the top of the food chain. - Eagles eating snakes, sharks eating smaller fish, lions eating zebras. - Play a key role in regulating the populations of other organisms in the ecosystem. - They have few or no natural predators and maintain the balance within ecosystems. # Trophic Level 3: Secondary Consumers (Carnivores and Omnivores) - Organisms that eat primary consumers. - Frogs eating insects, small fish eating zooplankton. - Transfer energy from primary consumers to higher trophic levels. - Includes both carnivores (e.g., lizards, snakes) and omnivores (e.g., raccoons, certain birds). # Trophic Level 2: Primary Consumers (Herbivores) - Organisms that eat producers to obtain energy. - Grasshoppers, deer, zooplankton. - Transfer energy from producers to the next trophic level. - Primary consumers are crucial for linking the energy from producers to secondary consumers. # Trophic Level 1: Producers (Autotrophs) - Organisms that create their own food through photosynthesis or chemosynthesis. - Plants, algae, phytoplankton. - Serve as the foundation of the food chain and capture solar or chemical energy to convert it into organic matter. - Importance: Without producers, energy would not enter the food chain, making life impossible for higher trophic levels. # Trophic Levels - Trophic levels are the different steps or levels in a food chain or web. - Feeding positions in a food chain. - Energy is passed along each level as one organism consumes another, but only a fraction is transferred. An image showing different trophic levels with the following: - Green Plants - Herbivores - Carnivores - Secondary Carnivores - Vultures, eagles, lions and tigers - Decomposers - Apex Predators - 1st Trophic Level (Producers) - 2nd Trophic Level (Primary Consumers) - 3rd Trophic Level (Secondary Consumers) - 4th Trophic Level ( Tertiary Consumers)