University:
East Georgia State College
Course:
BIOL 1107 | Principles of Biology I
Academic year:

2022
Views:

51

Pages:

2
Author:

StellarSymphony

Pass the Energy Please Background: The sun is the ultimate source of energy for any ecosystem. Producers capture some of the light energy from the sun and transfer it into chemical energy as organic molecules (food) by photosynthesis. Energy is transferred through the ecosystem along trophic (feeding) levels. Each time energy is transferred, some is lost making less available at the next feeding level. Energy is lost because consumers cannot extract all of the nutrients from their food sources and cell respiration converts a large portion of the energy from food into heat which cannot be consumed. Organisms use much of their energy to carry out life functions. The energy used to support life is converted to heat and lost so that only 10% of the energy is passed to the next level when one organism consumes another. A food chain is a simple sequence in which energy is transferred from one organism to another in an ecosystem. Ecosystems, however, are more complex and contain many more species. The food web is a more accurate illustration of energy transfer. Because of the energy lost as heat when animals carryout cellular respiration and other metabolic activities, there are fewer organisms in each feeding level within the ecosystem. Decomposers, such as fungi and bacteria, use decaying or dead matter as a food source and are not typically assigned a feeding level. Procedure: 1. Examine sample food chain and food web. 2. Identify the trophic (feeding) levels by filling in the names of organisms in the blank energy pyramid, choosing any food chain from the food web. Be sure to start with the algae (water plants) as the producers at the lowest trophic level. 3. Determine the actual amount of energy transferred to the final consumer. Remember that the energy efficiency is about 10% from one trophic level to the next. Begin with the algae’s trapping 1,000,000 calories in organic molecules at the base of the food pyramid and figure the number of calories that would be available to each consumer. Data Table: Quaternary consumer calories Tertiary consumer calories Secondary consumer calories Primary consumer (herbivores) calories Producer calories Carnivores Questions: 1. Why are there fewer consumers at the top of the energy pyramid? 2. What role does the sun play in the ecosystem? 3. Why is there energy lost between feeding levels? 4. Why are producers essential to the ecosystem? 5. Define producer, primary consumer, secondary consumer, and tertiary consumer. 6. Give two specific examples of a decomposer and write a general definition that describes all decomposers. Killer Whale Algae Leopard Seal Krill Cod Killer Whale Elephant Seal Crabeater Seal Leopard Seal Adelie penguin Squid Cod Krill Algae Small animals and one-celled organisms

Pass the Energy

Related Documents

Recommended Documents

Description

Related Documents

Free up your schedule!

Take 5 seconds to unlock