Ecology Food Webs
Dec 14, 2015
Review: What are the components of a food chain?
2. PRODUCERS
3. CONSUMERS
4. DECOMPOSER
1. SUN
Review: What is a food chain?
• A food chain is a model• It shows how energy is transferred in
an ecosystem when one organism eats another
Which food chain is correct?• Remember: a food chain shows how energy is
transferred in an ecosystem when one organism eats another
Food Chains• Some food chains are very short, because some
animals will only eat one thing• For example,• The Panda only eats bamboo shoots
Food Chains• Do you think a food chain is an accurate
representation of what REALLY happens in an ecosystem?
Food Webs• Most animals eat more than one kind of food, and
so they belong to many food chains• For example,• In a forest ecosystem, a rabbit will eat many
different kinds of plants
Food Webs• A fox may eat a rabbit, but it also eats insects,
birds, worms and other small animals• When food chains start to become very complex,
they are called Food Webs
Food Webs• Food chains show only a single set of energy
transfers
• A Food Web is a series of interconnected food chains
• A food web more accurately shows the many connections and flow of energy in an ecosystem