Energy Flow in an

Ecosystem
1

Energy Flow

Energy in an ecosystem originally

comes from the sun
Energy flows through Ecosystems
from producers to consumers
Producers (make food)
Consumers (use food by eating
producers or other consumers)

Producers
Sunlight is the main
source of energy
for most life on
earth.
Producers contain
chlorophyll & can
use energy directly
from the sun

Autotrophs

An Autotroph is any organism

that can produce its own food
supply!
Autotrophs are also called
Producers
Plants, algae, some protists, &
some bacteria are examples

Niche of a Producer

Captures energy and transforms it

into organic, stored energy for the
use of living organisms.
May be photo-autotrophs using light
energy (e.g. plants)
May be chemo-autotrophs using
chemical energy (e.g. cyanobacteria)

Photoautotroph

Producer That Captures Energy

from the sun by:
Photosynthesis
Adds Oxygen to the
atmosphere
Removes Carbon Dioxide from
the Atmosphere
Algae

Photosynthesis
8
6CO2 + 6H2O + chlorophyll C6H12O6 + 6O2

6O2 + C6H12O6 ---> 6H2O + 6CO2 + energy

CELLULAR
RESPIRATION is
the chemical
reaction that
releases the
energy (ATP) in
glucose.
9

10

Cellular respiration
reactions

Habitat of
On Land Photoautotrophs
11

Plants

In The Sea
Algae
Tidal Flats & Salt Marshes
Cyanobacteria

12

Chemoautotrophs

Capture energy from

the bonds of inorganic
molecules such as
Hydrogen Sulfide
Process is called
Chemosynthesis
Often occurs in deep
sea vents or gut of
animals

Called a Black
smoker (thermal
vent)

Tube Worms living in Black Smoker

13

14

Some energy in the primary

consumer is STORED & not
lost to the atmosphere or
used by the consumer itself.
This energy is available for
another consumer (predator).

15

Consumers

Heterotrophs eat other

organisms to obtain
energy. (e.g. animals)
Herbivores
Eat Only Plants
Carnivores
Eat Only Other
Animals

Consumers
Heterotrophs eat other organismsto
obtain energy.
Omnivores (Humans)
Eat Plants & Animals
Detritivores (Scavengers)
Feed On Dead Plant & Animal Remains
(buzzards)
Decomposers
Fungi & Bacteria

Trophic Levels,
Energy
Transfer and
Pyramids

18

Feeding Relationships

Energy flows
through an
ecosystem in
one direction
from producers
to various
levels of
consumers

The transfer of energy from

the sun to producer to primary
consumer then to higher order
consumers can be shown in a
FOOD CHAIN.

19

Vocabulary

Trophic Levels is the position an organism

occupies in a food chain. It refers to food or feeding.

Apex predator top level predators with few or no

predators of their own.

Food Chain

Food Chains
The energy flow from one trophic level to
the other is know as a food chain
Producers are at the first TROPHIC LEVEL
Primary Consumers are the SECOND
TROPHIC LEVEL
Secondary consumers are at the THIRD
TROPHIC LEVEL

Trophic Levels (feeding

levels)
3

Food Web
Most organisms eat more than
JUST one organism
When more organisms are
involved it is know as a FOOD WEB
Food webs are more complex and
involve lots of organisms

Food Webs

Food webs show

ALTERNATIVE
PATHWAYS other possible
pathways through which
an organism can obtain
energy

Food webs

Trophic Level

Grass
Mouse
Grasshopper
Frog
Owl
Hawk

Producer, primary
consumer, secondary
consumer, tertiary
consumer?

Trophic Level

Producer, primary
consumer, secondary
consumer, tertiary
consumer

Grass

1st

Mouse

2nd

Primary consumer

Grasshopper

2nd

Primary
consumer

Frog

3rd

Secondary
consumer

Owl

3rd and 4th

Secondary and
tertiary consumer

Hawk

3rd

Producer

Secondary
consumer

Transfer of Energy
When a lion eats a zebra, it does
not get all of the energy from the
zebra.
Energy lost is usually in form of
heat
Energy lost from chain link to
link is significant!

from grass to sheep, loss is about

90%!

HEAT
90%

HEAT
90%

100% Energy
Available

10% Original
Energy!

1% Original
Energy!

Energy lost from one trophic level

(energy level) to the next level can be
represented by a pyramid
4
CONSUMER
S

3
CONSUMERS

2 CONSUMERS

1 CONSUMERS

PRODUCERS

 Each level above only gets 10% of the

energy from below
Ex: 10,000 J of producers (plants) only give 10% of energy to
primary consumers

1,000 J to primary consumers (snails,

minnows, dragonflies)
100 J to secondary consumers (small
fish)
10 J to tertiary consumers (big fish)
1 J to quaternary consumers (fish hawk)

ENERGY PYRAMID

1J
10 J
100 J
1,000
J
10,000 J

Energy Pyramid

 Three hundred trout are needed to

support one man for a year. The
trout, in turn, must consume
90,000 frogs, that must consume
27 million grasshoppers that live
off of 1,000 tons of grass.
-- G. Tyler Miller, Jr., American Chemist
(1971)

 Usually no more than 5 trophic

levels since 6th level would have
very little energy to keep it alive

Ecological Pyramid

Which
Which
Which
Which

level
level
level
level

has
has
has
has

the
the
the
the

most
most
least
least

energy?
organisms?
organisms?
energy?

Pyramid of Numbers

Shows the numbers of individual organisms at each trophic level in an

ecosystem.

tertiary
consumers

secondary
consumers

5000

primary
consumers

500,000

producers
producers

5,000,000

A vast number of producers are required to support even a

few top level consumers.

Biomass pyramid

Biomass is a measure of the total dry mass of organisms in a given

area.

tertiary
consumers

75 g/m2

150g/m2
secondary
consumers
primary
consumers

producers
producers

675g/m2

2000g/m2

Name the Producer, Consumers &

Decomposers in this food chain:
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Food Web

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