Food chain: examples.

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The wildlife is almost no living organisms that can not be eaten by other creatures or are not to be anyone food.For example, many insects feed on plants.The insects themselves are prey for larger creatures.These or other organisms are links, which make up the food chain.Examples of such "addiction" can be found everywhere.Thus in this structure, there is any first reference level.Typically, this is a green plant.What are some examples of food supply chains?Which organisms can be functioning?How is the interaction between them?It was later in the article.

General

food chain, examples of which are given below, it is a specific set of microorganisms, fungi, plants, animals.Each link is on their level.We built this "dependence" on the principle of "food - the consumer."At the top of many food chains is a man.What in one country or another higher population density, the smaller units will be contained in the natural sequence, as people are forced into these conditions often eat plants.

Number of Levels

How long can food chain?Examples of multi-level, there are different sequences.The most revealing is the following: within the body of caterpillars present parasitic fly larvae in them - nematodes (worms) in the worms, respectively, bacteria, well in them - a variety of viruses.But an infinite number of units can not be.On every next level there is a reduction of biomass in a few dozen times.For example, 1,000 kg of moose plants can "create" a hundred kilogram of your body.But the tiger to increase the weight by 10 kg to 100 kg need to elk.The number of units depends on the conditions in which is formed one or other animal food chain.Examples of these systems can be found in nature.So, frogs are a favorite food of some species of snakes, which, in turn, feed on predators.Typically, such a "sequence" is not more than three or four units.This "building" is also called ecological pyramid.In it, each next step is much smaller than the previous one.

How is the interaction within the ecological pyramid?

How does the food chain?The examples above show that each successive unit must stand on a higher level of development than the previous one.As already mentioned, the relationship at any ecological pyramid built on the principle of "food-to-consumer".Through eating among other organisms carried out the transfer of energy from lower to higher levels.As a result, the cycle of matter in nature.

food chain.Examples

Conditionally can distinguish several types of ecological pyramids.There is, in particular grazing food chain.Examples that can be seen in nature, are sequences where the energy is transferred from the lower (protozoa) to higher organisms (predators).These pyramids, in particular, include the following sequence: "caterpillar-mouse-viper-urchins-fox", "rodent predators."Another detrital food chain, examples of which are given below, it is a sequence in which the biomass is not used by predators, and holds the rotting process involving microorganisms.It is believed that this ecological pyramid begins with plants.Thus, in particular, looks up the food chain timber.Examples include the following: "fallen leaves decay, with the participation of micro-organisms", "dead tissue растений-грибы-многоножки-экскременты-грибы-ногохвостики-клещи(predatory) -hischniki-centipede-bacteria ".

producers and consumers

In a large body of water (ocean view) planktonic unicellular algae are food for cladocerans (animals are filter feeders).These in turn are prey for carnivorous mosquito larvae.These organisms feed on a particular species of fish.They are eaten by larger predatory individuals.This ecological pyramid - an example of the food chain of the sea.All organisms that act as links, are at different trophic levels.In the first stage are producers, next - consuments first order (consumers).The third trophic level consumers are 2nd order (primary carnivores).They, in turn, serve as food for the secondary predators - consumers third order and so on.Generally, environmental pyramid sushi include three or five units.

Outdoor pond

For shelf sea, in a place where the slope of the continent more or less steeply toward the deep sea plain originates open sea.In this zone, mostly blue and clear water.This is due to the absence of suspended inorganic compounds and a smaller volume of microscopic planktonic plants and animals (phytoplankton and zooplankton).In some areas, the water surface of a notably bright blue color.For example, the Sargasso Sea.In such cases we speak of the so-called ocean deserts.In these zones, even at a depth of thousands of meters using sensitive equipment can detect traces of light (in the blue-green spectrum).Compliance is inherent in the composition of the complete absence of zooplankton larvae of different benthic organisms (echinoderms, molluscs, crustaceans), whose number is as the distance from the coast drops sharply.As in shallow water, and in the vast expanses as the sole source of power in favor sunshine.As a result, photosynthetic phytoplankton using chlorophyll forming organic compounds from carbon dioxide and water.Thus a so-called primary products.

food chain

sea algae synthesized organic compounds are transferred directly or indirectly to all organisms.The second link of the food chain in the sea animals are filter feeders.The organisms that make up the phytoplankton have a microscopically small size (0.002-1mm).Often, they form colonies and their size is not greater than five millimeters.The third element is the carnivores.They feed on filter feeders.In the offshore, as well as on the high seas, a lot of these organisms.These include, in particular, siphonophores, ctenophores, jellyfish, copepods, chaetognaths, karinaridy.Among the fish should be attributed to the filter-herrings.Their main food are copepods, in the northern waters forming large clumps.The fourth element considered large predatory fish.Some species have commercial value.To the final link should also include cephalopods, toothed whales and seabirds.

transfer nutrients

Transfer of organic compounds in food chains is accompanied by significant loss of energy.This is mainly due to the fact that most of it is spent on the metabolism.About 10% of the energy is converted into the substance of the body of an organism.Therefore, for example, anchovy, planktonic algae and belongs to the structure of the food exclusively short circuit may develop in such large amounts as in the Peru current.Transfer food into the twilight zone and the depth of the light is due to the active vertical migration of zooplankton and certain species of fish.The moving up and down the animals at different times are at different depths.

Conclusion

It should be noted that the linear food chains are quite rare.Most often, the ecological pyramid include the population belonging to several levels.The same species can be eaten and plants and animals;carnivores can eat by consumers as the first and the second and the following orders;many animals consume the living and dead organisms.Due to the complexity of link relationships, loss of a species is often little impact on the ecosystem.Those organisms that took precipitated link in the food may well find another source of supply and the missing link of the food begin to use other organisms.So the whole community keeps the balance.Stability will be the ecological system in which there are more complex power supply circuit consisting of a plurality of units having a plurality of different species.