Definitions [5]
A series of organisms where one is eaten by the next and energy flows from producers to consumers is called a food chain.
A network of interconnected food chains showing how various organisms are related through feeding relationships is called a food web.
Define the following term and give two examples:
Symbiosis
It refers to relationships between organisms of different species that show on intimate association with each other. Symbiotic relationships provide atleast one of the participating species with a nutritional advantage.
Examples of Symbiosis Relationships are of Fungus and photosynthestic alga and Microbes and cattle.
Define the term predation.
A predator is any consumer that kills and eats another living organism in order to obtain energy. The organism being eaten is called the prey.
Define the food chain and give two examples.
Food chain, in ecology, the sequence of transfers of matter and energy in the form of food from organism to organism. Food chains intertwine locally into a food web because most organisms consume more than one type of animal or plant. Plants, which convert solar energy to food by photosynthesis, are the primary food source. In a predator chain, a plant-eating animal is eaten by a flesh-eating animal. In a parasite chain, a smaller organism consumes part of a larger host and may itself be parasitized by even smaller organisms. In a saprophytic chain, microorganisms live on dead organic matter.
Key Points
- A food chain is a linear sequence of organisms in which food energy is transferred from producers to consumers.
- Every food chain begins with producers (green plants) and usually ends with top consumers that are not preyed upon.
- Energy decreases at each trophic level, so food chains are usually short (not more than five levels).
- Shorter food chains are more stable and efficient, as less energy is lost at each step.
- A food web is a network of interconnected food chains operating within an ecosystem.
- It shows multiple feeding relationships, as organisms may have more than one food source.
- Food webs represent the flow of energy and nutrients among producers and consumers.
- The complexity of a food web depends on the diversity of organisms and the number of alternative food choices.
