U11: Energy Flow ECDCICA

What’s for Lunch? Black Bear Raccoon

What’s for Lunch? Ruffed Grouse Hawk

Trophic Level Ecosystems are structured by who eats whom. A trophic level is the position that an organism occupies in a food chain- what it eats and what eats it. Every organism belongs to at least one feeding level or tropic level.

Energy Pyramid A graphical representation to show the relationship between energy and the trophic levels of a given system is an Energy Pyramid.

Law of Thermodynamics As chemical energy flows through an ecosystem heat energy is lost at each trophic level. Only 10% of the chemical energy transfers and 90% is lost as heat energy. This heat energy loss is displayed in the Energy Pyramid.

Law of Thermodynamics

Law of Thermodynamics

Trophic Level Producers make their own food through photosynthesis or chemosynthesis Examples: grass, fern, cactus, flowering plant, tree, algae, some bacteria

Trophic Level Consumers get their energy by eating producers or other consumers. Examples: mouse, starfish, turtle, paramecium, sponge, ant, human

Trophic Level Decomposers break down dead organisms in an ecosystem and return the nutrients to soil, water and air. Converts bond energy from dead and decaying organisms into heat. Examples: fungus, bacteria

What can make their own food? Producers! Autotroph auto means self troph means nourish An organism that produces, or makes their own food. Autotrophs are also called producers.

Cannot make their own food Heterotroph hetero means other troph means nourish An organism that obtains its energy by the consumption of or decaying of other organisms. Heterotrophs are also called consumers (consumption) or decomposers (decaying).

Types of organisms A. Consumers in an ecosystem Primary Consumer – The first consumer in a food chain/ food web and consumes a producer. Herbivores or plant eater

Secondary Consumer – The second consumer in a food chain/food web.

Tertiary Consumer – The third consumer in a food chain/food web.

What it eats – niche in the food web Herbivore – An organism that eats plants, nuts, berries ie. rabbit, deer   Omnivore – An organism that eats plants and animals ie. black bear, human Carnivore – An organism that eats animals ie. wolf, hawk, whale Scavenger – An organism that feeds off of dead animals that they did not hunt or kill themselves. ie. vulture

Where are the Omnivores?

Predator vs Prey   Predator – An organism that feeds on what it hunts and kills ie. coyote Prey – An organism that is hunted and killed for food ie: mouse Is a producer prey? ______ Can an organism be both prey and predator? ___

Food Chain – A pathway in which energy flows through an ecosystem.

Food Web – All possible pathways in which energy flows through an ecosystem.  

Energy flow… how it begins Photosynthesis – Conversion of sun’s energy to chemical energy (food). Performed by producers. 6CO2 + 12H2O + Sunlight energy  C6H12O6 + 6O2 + 6H20 (C6H12O6 = glucose, food energy, chemical energy, potential energy - in bonds) 

Cellular Respiration – Process by which chemical energy (food) is converted to usable energy. Performed by producers, consumers and decomposers! C6H12O6 + 6O2 + 2ATP  6CO2 + 6H2O + 38ATP (usable energy for cells)

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_________________ Water is released

___________________________ 2 ATP

Energy Flow

Energy in a Pond Circle the Autotrophs and draw a rectangle around the Heterotrophs Draw an arrow to all organisms that would be an energy source for decomposers Label PH – for all organisms that perform Photosynthesis Label CR – for all organisms that perform Cellular Respiration Label 1E – for the primary energy source in this ecosystem Label 1C - primary consumers, Label 2C – secondary consumers & Label 3C- tertiary consumers List abiotic factors in pond __________________________________________________  

Energy Flow - Label in the diagram: chemical energy transfer (10%) or heat energy loss (90%)