P6 Science Food Chains and Food Webs (Notes)

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:: P6 Science Food Chains and Food Webs (Notes) Food Chains
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Animals depend on plants or other animals for food. o o o Herbivores eat only plants. Examples include cows, goats and grasshoppers. Carnivores eat only animals. Examples include tigers, lions and eagles. Omnivores eat both plants and animals. Examples include pigs, chickens and humans.
The relationship between plants and animals may be shown in a food chain. The arrows in a food chain point to the animal which the organism on the left is eaten by. In the example below, the fruit is eaten by an insect, which is then eaten by a frog. The frog is then eaten by a snake.
The insect is known as the "prey" of the frog, while the snake is the "predator" of the insect. The frog is both a predator and prey in this food chain. Since plants are the only living things that can make their own food, they are known as "producers". Plants are always found at the start of the food chain. Animals are known as "consumers" because they get their energy directly from eating plants, or indirectly, by eating other plant-eating animals. Herbivores are usually known as primary consumers. Carnivores that eat herbivores are known as secondary consumers Carnivores that eat other carnivores are called tertiary consumers.
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An animal may eat more than one type of food, so we can draw more than one arrow pointing to the animal. This results in the interlinking of food chains. When several food chains are interlinked, they form a food web. The food web in the example below is made up of four different food chains.
Another example of food chains forming a food web is as follows:


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The food web shows the relationships among the organisms in a community based on food patterns. These relationships help to control the populations and hence, maintain a balance.
Transfer of Energy & Food Chain Plants convert light energy from the Sun into chemical energy, which is stored in the plant parts. Animals get their energy from eating plants or other animals. However, not all the energy that is stored in plants or animals can be passed to the next animal in the food chain. This is because some of the energy is used up during life processes in the plants and animals. In addition, some energy is lost as heat from the bodies of animals to their surroundings. Therefore, the population of organisms at the start of the food chain must be more than the population of animals at the end of the food chain in order to have sufficient food to feed the animals at every level of the food chain. We can use a food pyramid to represent the population size of each organism in the food chain as shown below: Food chain of organisms in a field community: Grass >Grasshopper > Mynah > Python Food pyramid for the above food chain:
The food web can be viewed not only as a network of chains but also as a series of trophic (nutritional) levels. Green plants, the primary producers of food in most food webs, belong to the first trophic level. Herbivores, consumers of green plants, belong to the second trophic level. Carnivores, predators feeding upon the herbivores, belong to the third. Omnivores, consumers of both plants and animals, belong to the second and third. Secondary carnivores, which are predators that feed on predators,


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belong to the fourth trophic level. As the trophic levels rise, the predators become fewer, larger, fiercer, and more agile Achieving Balance in a Food Chain
Under normal circumstances, there is sufficient food for all the organisms in the community. However, changes to one population will affect the populations of the rest of the organisms in the food chain. These changes may include diseases which kill off some plants or animals, introduction of new predators, or man's activities which pollute or destroy the natural habitat of the community.
For example, in the food chain of the organisms from the field community shown above, if a fire burns up all the grass, all the other animals will die as the food producer is destroyed. If a disease kills mynahs, the population of pythons will decrease as they will have less food to eat. On the other hand, the grasshopper population will increase as they have fewer predators. However, the grasshopper population will not keep increasing as there is a limited amount of grass to feed them. If there are too many grasshoppers, some will eventually starve to death, and the grasshopper population will be reduced again. In this way, the population sizes of the various populations will keep adjusting until a new balance is achieved.
Decomposers
Decomposers cannot make their own food. They obtain their food by breaking down dead plants and animals, thus causing them to decay. Examples of decomposers include bacteria and fungi. o o Bacteria are microscopic organisms. They can cause illnesses in humans. Fungi are non-green plants which cannot make their own food because they do not contain chlorophyll. Fungi reproduce from spores. Examples of fungi include mushrooms, toadstools and mould.
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Decomposition is the process of breaking down dead matter into simpler substances such as mineral salts, water and carbon dioxide. Oxygen is required for decomposition to take place. The process of decomposition is summarized in the diagram below.
Decomposers are important because they help to return mineral salts to the soil and help to produce substances which green plants need to grow well. Plants require mineral salts to grow strong and healthy. They also need carbon dioxide to make food.
Animals such as vultures, earthworms, woodlice, maggots and dung beetles feed on dead matter although they are not decomposers. These animals help to break down the dead matter into smaller pieces. This makes it easier for decomposers to feed, and it speeds up the process of decomposition. The below shows a life cycle including decomposers.


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