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Explain the relationship between producers, consumers, and decomposers.
· Producers use the sun's energy to produce food, which is eaten by consumers. Eventually decomposers break everything down into simple compounds.
What are food chains, food webs?
· A food chain is food being passed from producer to other organisms
· Most animals eat many different types of animals. All the animals consumed in a community are a food web.
Explain and draw a pyramid of energy and biomass.
As energy and biomass get passed along the food chain, it decreases in size.
Picture of Energy pyramid
Cycles of Materials 37 - 3
In all ecosystems, materials revolve between living things and the environment. Organisms incorporate certain substance from the environment into their bodies. When organisms die substances are broken down by decomposers and returned to the environment. The cycles of materials between living things and the environment are called biogeochemical cycles.
Pictures of Cycles
Maintenance and Change in Ecosystems 37 - 4
What is ecological succession? Be sure to explain dominant species, climax communities, primary and secondary succession.
· Replacement of one type of community by another in a continuous sequence over time Dominant species determines what types of organisms can survive there.
· Finally leads to a stable community that does not change called a climax community.
· Primary succession starts on barren rock covered land with pioneer organisms (lichens).
· Secondary succession is on land that has been partially destroyed.
Describe succession on land.
· Pioneer organism - grasses - shrubs - conifers - and deciduous trees.
· Flora - all plant species, Fauna - all animal species.
Picture of Succession on Land
Describe succession in lakes and ponds
· As pond gradually fills with sediment it gets shallower.
· Eventually pond fills in and a forest starts to develop.
Picture of Succession in a Lake
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