Transcript FOOD WEBS
FOOD WEBS Habitat • A habitat is an environment that meets the needs of an organism Producer • A producer is a living thing, such as a plant, that makes its own food Consumer • A consumer is a living thing that eats other living things for energy Decomposer • A decomposer is a living thing that feeds on the wastes of plants and animals or on their remains after they die Niche • An organism’s niche includes all the ways it meets its basic needs – how it gets shelter, how it produces young, and how it gets food and water. The sun is the main source of energy for ALL living things. Animals don’t get energy directly from the sun. Many animals eat plants, however, which use sunlight to make food. Animals that don’t eat plants still depend on the energy of sunlight. They eat animals that eat plants. Food Chains • Food chains are used to describe the way energy moves through ecosystems. energy Food Chains have three levels: • Producers → plants (make own energy) • Consumers → eat other living things for energy • Decomposers → feed on the wastes of plants and animals or their remains Food Chains are used to study how larger species are fed. foxes sunlight plants rabbit fox The arrows in a food chain show how the energy is transferred. The fox eats rabbits. The rabbit eats plants. The plants get their food by photosynthesis which begins with sunlight. Think of a food chain as one specific route to get from point A to point B; like from the classroom to the cafeteria. A B All organisms in an ecosystem need energy from food to live. An energy pyramid shows how much food energy is passed from one organism to another long a food chain. Barn owl snake acorn squirrel Some habitats overlap. When they do, similar organisms may compete for the same food or space. Two species of fish living in the same pond may compete for the same insects as food. Organisms that are very different may not need to compete. Birds and caterpillars live in the same habitat, but they meet their needs in different ways. A food web is a diagram that shows how food chains connect and overlap. lizard hawk rabbit mouse beetle cactus coyote In a food chain and in a food web energy begins with the sun.