Energy, Producers, and Consumers Chapter 3-2 Energy, Producers, and Consumers

Daily Objectives Define and describe the role of primary producers Describe the ways consumers obtain energy and nutrients

Primary Producers Organisms need energy for growth, reproduction, and metabolic processes. No organism can create energy—organisms can only use energy from other sources.

Primary Producers For most life on Earth, sunlight is the ultimate energy source. (Photosynthesis) Some organisms use chemical energy stored in inorganic chemical compounds as their energy source (Chemosynthesis)

Primary Producers Autotrophs (producers) use solar or chemical energy to produce “food” by assembling inorganic compounds into complex organic molecules. Autotrophs store energy in forms that make it available to other organisms that eat them.

Feeding Relationships There are 3 main types of feeding relationships 1. Producer - Consumer 2. Predator - Prey 3. Parasite - Host

Producers All autotrophs (plants), they trap energy from the sun. Bottom of the food chain.

Consumers All heterotrophs: they ingest food containing the sun’s energy Herbivores Carnivores Omnivores Decomposers Detrivores

Herbivores - Eat plants in order to obtain energy Ex. Cow, Deer, Caterpillars

Carnivores Eat meat to obtain energy Example: Tiger and Shark

Carnivores Predators Scavengers Hunt prey animals for food. Example: Fox Scavengers Feed on dead organisms. Example: Vulture

Omnivores Eat both plants and animals Ex. Humans, Bears, Pigs, and Raccoons

Decomposers Breakdown dead and decaying plants and animals into simpler molecules that can be absorbed Ex. Bacteria and Fungi

Detrivores Feed on detritus particles (bacteria in soil), often chewing or grinding them into smaller pieces. Example: Earthworms