Food Webs: Cycling of Matter & Flow of Energy

An ecosystem is made up of all the nonliving and living things who live together in a common environment. Some examples of ecosystems are ponds, forests, deserts and the ocean.

A pond ecosystem has a variety of water plants. Algae and other microscopic organisms thrive in pond ecosystems. There are usually a variety of insects in pond ecosystems, as well as frogs and snakes. Rocks and sand are some abiotic factors commonly found in pond ecosystems.

Plants make their own energy through a process called photosynthesis.

Sometimes their remains are eaten by other animals. Other times their remains decompose and end up going back into the soil eventually.

When we eat food, our body goes through chemical processes in order to make energy to fuel bodily functions such as digestion and respiration.

People are consumers. We are part of ecosystems in that we eat other living things. We should be aware of our food source to make sure it is healthy. We also should be aware of ecosystems to make sure we continue to have diverse life on Earth.

When we eat food, our body breaks the molecules down through chemical processes. In cellular respiration, our bodies use sugar and oxygen to create energy for our bodies to use in different ways. The molecules are broken down into building blocks and put back together in different ways.

Only about 10% of energy is passed on to the next organism in a food chain, so there needs to be more of the living things lower in the energy pyramid to support the living things higher in the pyramid.

Decomposers break down dead material. They break the dead matter into molecules like carbon dioxide and water, that go back into the soil.

A food web is the overlapping of several food chains. Living things don’t eat the exact thing all the time, so this causes food chains to overlap.

An apex consumer is the consumer at the top of a food chain. Some examples are hawks or bears.

Marine biologists study food chains within our oceans. This is important because humans eat fish and we need to be aware of hazards such as mercury in the fish that we eat.