Hi, everybody! I'm Barnaby the Barn Owl. I'm here to talk about: ENERGY FLOW in ECOSYSTEMS Dec 12 8:33 PM 1
You already know that materials like Water, Carbon, Nitrogen, and Oxygen CYCLE through ecosystems over and over and over and over Sheesh. They get it already! and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and Dec 12 8:33 PM 2
That's easy: ONCE! Okay, Smartiepants! Then you can answer the next question: How many times does energy travel through an ecosystem? Dec 12 8:33 PM 3
You're right! It all starts with the energy from the sun... Dec 12 8:57 PM 4
Green plants capture the energy from the sun in a process called Photosynthesis, a chemical reaction in which green plants use water and carbon dioxide. The energy is stored in GLUCOSE. Flow of energy Dec 12 8:58 PM 5
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Organisms that can make their own food are called PRODUCERS aka autotrophs "auto" = "self "troph" = "feeding" Dec 12 9:35 PM 7
Producers use most of the energy they make for themselves! They release the energy from the glucose by undergoing the process of RESPIRATION Dec 12 9:19 PM 8
Remember, these two processes are OPPOSITE of each other! Dec 12 9:23 PM 9
Some of the energy that is not used by the producer or lost as heat is available to consumers. Energy flow Dec 12 9:24 PM 10
Organisms that cannot make their own food are called CONSUMERS aka Heterotrophs "hetero" = "other" "troph" = "feeding Dec 12 9:11 PM 11
A consumer that gets its energy from producers is a primary or first level consumer. It can also be called an herbivore. Dec 12 9:29 PM 12
Most of the energy the primary consumer gets from the producer is used by the primary consumer. It takes lots of energy to be a vole! Dec 12 9:41 PM 13
Some of the energy is lost as heat... Dec 12 9:47 PM 14
Some of the energy is incorporated into the body of the (not lost to the atmosphere or used by the consumer itself. This energy is available to the next trophic level. Uh oh...i think I know what's coming next... "feeding level" Dec 12 9:48 PM 15
Secondary Consumers get their energy from primary consumers. This barn owl is a carnivore. I knew it! Bummer... Dec 13 10:43 PM 16
Most of the energy the secondary consumer gets from the primary consumer is used by the secondary consumer. I'm using some energy to do a little dance! Dec 13 10:50 PM 17
Some of the energy is lost as heat, but some is stored and can be passed on to the next trophic level... Barn owls are most vulnerable to predation as owlets. Dec 12 9:49 PM 18
A consumer that eats a consumer that already ate a consumer is a 3rd order or Tertiary Consumer Don't hate me because I'm beautiful... Could be a carnivore or an omnivore... or maybe a scavenger... Dec 12 9:49 PM 19
Consumers that hunt and kill other consumers are called predators. The animals that are hunted and killed are called prey. Mole Pocket Gopher Some common prey of the barn owl. Mouse Vole Shrew Dec 12 9:49 PM 20
The transfer of energy from the sun to producer to consumers can be shown in a food chain. secondary consumer producer primary consumer Dec 12 9:50 PM 21
Food chains are nothing new... Dec 12 9:10 PM 22
Another way of showing the transfer of energy is an ENERGY PYRAMID. Dec 12 9:50 PM 23
An Energy Pyramid shows: The amount of available energy decreases as it passes through the ecosystem. It takes a larger number of producers to support a smaller number of primary consumers. It takes a larger number of primary consumers to support a smaller number of secondary consumers. Dec 12 9:51 PM 24
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Roughly 10% of the energy from one level is passed on to the next level. This is why I must consume mass quantities of prey! Dec 13 11:57 PM 26
barn owl grass grasshopper shrew Dec 14 1:13 AM 27
FOOD WEBS are interconnected food chains. Dec 12 9:51 PM 28
Here is a food web of a barn owl. Dec 12 8:08 PM 29
Can an animal can occupy more than one level of a food web? Dec 14 12:03 AM 30
YES -- It depends on which chain you follow... secondary consumer tertiary consumer secondary consumer secondary consumer primary consumer primary consumer primary consumer producer Dec 14 12:03 AM 31
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