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What Is A Food Chain? | The Dr. Binocs Show | Educational Videos For Kids

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All matter is conserved in an ecosystem, but energy flows through an ecosystem. This energy moves from one organism to the next in what is known as a food chain.

All living things need nutrients to survive, and food chains show these feeding relationships. Every ecosystem on Earth has many food chains that include a variety of organisms.

A food chain shows energy pathways in ecosystems. Each ecosystem on the planet has food chains of organisms ranging from producers to consumers. The producers are on the lowest level of the food chain, while the consumers that eat those producers are called primary consumers. Higher-level consumers who eat those organisms are called secondary and tertiary consumers.

You can think of a food chain as a long line that extends from producers to each consumer. Energy and nutrients move along this line in one direction.

Food chains differ from in that they are showing a single line of feeding relationships. Food webs actually consist of many food chains together. A food chain is a linear display of energy movement and consumption.

On the other hand, a food web shows interrelated relationships and multiple food chains in one. Webs are a better representation of what actually happens in the real world because consumers may eat different types of producers, and more than one consumer may eat a producer.

Food webs are not linear because they show relationships among multiple trophic levels for organisms all at once. They summarize all of the food chains and relationships in an ecosystem or community. A food web reveals the different ways that plants and animals stay connected.

A trophic level is a step in the food chain that each organism occupies. In a simple food chain, it is easy to see the trophic pyramid. At the base of the food chain are the producers, and at the top of the food chain are the consumers. Each organism in a food chain represents one trophic level.

It is important to note that 90 percent of the energy is lost between each trophic level, so only 10 percent of the energy from one step is transferred to the next one. Since the energy transfer is not efficient, the size of the food chain has a limit on it. At each level, a large amount of energy is lost to heat.

Most food chains consist of at least producers and primary consumers. Some chains are more complex and have secondary consumers and tertiary consumers. The first trophic level or first organism in a food chain usually consists of producers called autotrophs. These organisms make their own food by using light energy and turning it into chemical energy.

The second trophic level has primary consumers called heterotrophs. These organisms have to consume producers to incorporate their energy into their own biomass. They cannot make their own energy from light or chemicals.

The third trophic level has secondary consumers, which are heterotrophs that eat other consumers. The fourth trophic level has tertiary consumers or apex predators. They are high-level consumers and predators. An example of a top predator is a human who can eat both producers and other consumers.

Decomposers have their own separate trophic level and are in a different part of the food chain. They are sometimes called the last trophic level because they recycle the matter back into the soil or atmosphere. Decomposers allow producers to begin the chain again by moving nutrients and energy through an ecosystem.

Each organism fills a specific niche in an ecosystem that can be seen in food chains. Do they create initial energy through photosynthesis? Can they eat one group to keep the population in control? Do they decompose other organisms? Are they acting as a predator or prey?

Food chains are important because they show the intricate relationships in ecosystems. They can reveal how each organism depends on someone else for survival. Food chains also display what happens when a problem occurs and a producer or consumer is lost. Entire communities can collapse. Food chains can help scientists learn more about ecosystems and how to help them stay balanced.

Depending on the food chain you are examining, the same organism can be considered to be at more than one trophic level. For example, seals could be considered apex predators at the highest trophic level in certain environments where they eat fish that are primary or secondary consumers.

However, in other communities where seals become prey for sharks, they could be considered to be at a lower trophic level. These relationships are easier to see in food webs and harder to notice in food chains or pyramids.

You can find interesting examples of food chains in habitats ranging from forests to lakes. For instance, meerkats can be a top predator in one food chain by eating insects and worms. However, in other food chains, predators like eagles can eat the meerkats.

An example of a simple food chain starts with grass, which is a producer. The next level is the grasshopper or primary consumer and herbivore that eats the grass. Then, the secondary consumer is the frog that eats the grasshopper. Finally, the tertiary consumer is the hawk that eats the frog.

Another example of a food chain starts with a tree that has delicious leaves. Insects are the primary consumers that eat the leaves. Then, woodpeckers are the secondary consumers that eat the insects. Finally, a feral cat acts as the tertiary consumer and eats the woodpeckers.

Many things can upset a food chain in an ecosystem. From natural disasters to poaching, it is possible for the careful balance of the relationships among organisms to be disturbed. If you look at the food chains that have humans at the top, pests and diseases often create problems in the food supply. This is why studying food chains is important for everyone on Earth.

For instance, as its name implies, the Colorado potato beetle eats potatoes. They can completely destroy a potato plant by consuming all the leaves and killing it. Colorado potato beetles are pests that cause serious damage to crops. In addition to attacking potatoes, they can eat tomatoes, peppers and other plants. As humans have tried to control the beetle, it has become resistant to insecticides.

The loss of producers such as potato plants is not the only problem that an ecosystem can face. The disappearance of an important consumer can also affect it. At Yellowstone National Park in the United States, the loss of wolves had a strong effect on elk populations, which exploded without the predators. The elk destroyed vegetation, including willow stands. This reduced the population of beavers that depended on the willow stands.

After the wolves were reintroduced, scientists noticed the ecosystem returning to normal at Yellowstone. Elk populations declined, vegetation increased and beavers had a food source again. This example shows how organisms depend on each other and their environments, and how a small change can upset the entire food chain or web. Sometimes the loss of a predator is as devastating as the loss of a producer.

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Food Chain: Definition, Types, Importance & Examples (with Diagram)

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While all matter is conserved in an ecosystem, energy still flows through it. This energy moves from one organism to the next in what is known as a food chain. All living things need food to survive, and food chains show these feeding relationships. Every ecosystem has many food chains.

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All processes in this world, whether living or non-living, need energy. Living organisms are capable of producing energy or getting it through predation. They need this energy to maintain cells and tissues. It is also required for supporting voluntary and involuntary actions of the human body and other multiple processes within the body like reproduction, cell division, metabolism, digestion, circulation, excretion, and much more.

The ultimate source of energy on Earth is the Sun. No energy can be produced without the sun. All living beings, especially plants capture solar energy and utilise it for their food production. This process is called photosynthesis.

What is Food Web?

There are unique interactions and relationships which are involved in the transportation of energy. The energy, once produced and captured, is distributed throughout the various living organisms. This transfer of energy is termed as the food web.

What is the Food Chain?

A food chain is a network of links in a food web. Here, the producers are consumed by the predators-primary and secondary consumers and then the detritivores and finally by decomposers. When many such individual food chains occur in an ecosystem, it is known as Food Web.

A food chain shows a direct transfer of energy between organisms. As every organism can feed on multiple things, a food web is a much more realistic and simplified method of transferring energy in an ecosystem.

Both food chains and food webs are similar to each other, but they are not the same. We will explore the differences here.

A food chain presents a unique, connected path of energy flow in an ecosystem, whereas the food web explains how food chains overlap. Both food chains and food webs, shares three types of organisms in a food chain: producers, consumers and decomposers.

Explore more: Difference Between Food Chain And Food Web

Producers

Organisms that can synthesize their own food and usually serve as the foundation for all food chains. For example - plants, algae and few species of bacteria. They prepare their own food by converting sunlight into chemical energy and this process is called photosynthesis. They use energy from the sunlight for converting carbon dioxide into simple glucose which is easily broken down to produce energy. This energy is then stored in the form of sugars for later use.

The simple diagram of the Ecological Pyramid Food Web and Food Chain is shown below.

Primary Consumers

They are also called herbivores animals who eat producers or plants. Sometimes, these primary consumers become prey for other animals that sit higher on the food chain. Some of the primary consumers or herbivores living on the land are chipmunks, mice, horses, birds, deer and some insects. Fish, zooplankton, snails, sea urchins are a few marine primary consumers.

10 Percent Energy Rule

Even though primary consumers feed on producers, they are still getting their energy from the sun. The primary consumers feed on plants and break down the food particles to release the energy.

Primary consumers do not get 100% of the sun's energy from the producers or the plants on which they feed. This is because only some amount of the sun's energy is utilised by the plant to synthesise their food.

In fact, they only get 10% of the energy. This is termed as the 10% Rule, which states that only 10 per cent of the energy available gets passed onto the next level of consumers.

Secondary Consumers

These are animals who feed on primary consumers. They usually eat meat and are termed as predators. Lion, hawks, snakes, coyotes, wolves, and spiders are a few terrestrial secondary consumers.

Tertiary Consumers

They are the ones who feed on secondary consumers. They are thus called the top predators. They are also termed as apex predators and have no natural enemies. Naturally, you would assume that humans are at the top of the food chain, but they are not.

Why are Humans not at the top of the food chain?

Scientists categorize the organisms on the food chain by trophic levels. A "Trophic level" means how far an organism is from the start (level 1) of the food chain.

Predators that use a top-down control on organisms in their community are often considered keystone species. Humans are not considered apex predators because their diets are typically different, although human trophic levels increase with the consumption of meat.

For instance, plants are considered to be at trophic level 1, and the apex predators are usually placed at level 4 or 5. According to scientists, humans are placed on a trophic level of 2.21.

For more detailed information about the food web, food chain, or any other related topics, explore at BYJU'S Biology.

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Food Web - Producers, Primary, Secondary and Tertiary Consumers

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All processes in this world, whether living or non-living, need energy. Living organisms are capable of producing energy or getting it through predation. They need this energy to maintain cells and tissues. It is also required for supporting voluntary and involuntary actions of the human body and other multiple processes within the body like reproduction, cell division, metabolism, digestion, circulation, excretion, and much more.

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Food Webs: Types, Importance, & Examples | Eden Green

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Dive into the complexity of food webs to understand their types, roles in ecosystems, and why they matter for biodiversity. Learn more today!

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Food chain is some favorite animals to eat but without this animals they will death

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Food web is the similars with food chain

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food chain is how different animals eat other animals for survival

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food web consists of every dood chain in an ecosystem

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food*

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Food chain is a an animals eat a animal

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Food web is a all the food chains in a single ecosystem

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Food chain is how the enery in living things flow to each other.

Some food chain are more complex than the others and some are simple. A food chain at least have a producer and and primary consumer.

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Food web is a complex map of how energy flows through an ecosytem. It shows how they interact with each other.

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The food chain shows the order of how energy moves through an ecosystem.

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The food web is the complete version of the food chain in an ecosystem. It shows how energy moves through every animal in an ecosystem.

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They both show how energy moves through organisms.

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Food chains are organisms that eat each other to survive.

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A food chain only shows the moving of energy from 1 animal to another but a food web shows the movement of energy through an entire ecosystem.

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Food web is an interaction of several food chains in ecosystem.

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A food web is the interconnection of different food chain

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They both show how energy moves from each step such as producer, primary, secondary, and etc

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A food chain is how organisms eat each other or they have their energy from each other.

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A food chain is a chain where it show animals getting eaten by another animal for energy.

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Food web is all about how animals interact with eachother and how they depend on eachother.

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They both show how energy flows into different kinds of species/animals.

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Food Chain consist of producer, decomposer, and consumer.

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Food web is telling us that living things live interdependently.

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They both show us that living things live interdependently.

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A food chain only show us some living things while food web show us a living things in a ecosystem.

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A food web shows a complex map of the connections between multiple food chains in an ecosystem. A food web shows how energy is tranfered from one living thing to another in endless cycle.

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A food chain shows the transportation of energy ranging from the producers to the primary, secondary, and tietary consumers. Food chains show one line of feeding relationships.

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They both show how energy flows from one biotic organisms to another. It also shows how they live interdependently.

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A food chain shows only the transportation of energy from the producers to consumers. Meanwhile, a food web consists of many food chains and it also shows how the energy is transported throughout an entire ecosystem.

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they both shows about what animals eat to survive

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food chain only shows one food chain but food web shows the whole food chain in a whole ecosystem

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Food chain is when an animal eat another animal so they can survive from their live so they can still alive

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Food chain describe how different organisms eat each other for survival.

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The Food Chain is when an animals eat another animal, and that animal gets eaten and so on, until it will end with the Decomposers and repeat with the Producers

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Food webs is how living things live interdependently

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A food web is a diagram that illustrates what-eats-what in an ecological community.

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The food web shows a more specific way of what other animals can eat a different one.

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The Food web is similar to the Food chain because, the food web shows what other animals can eat a specific or different animal.

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They both show how they live together in diffrent orginisms biotic and abiotic components,but they still can live together with a interdepentdelty life.

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The food chain is the circulation of food in an ecosystem that will continue to repeat itself.

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The Food web is a connected to a multitude of interconnected food chains at many trophic levels while the food chain is simpler version of the food web.

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A food web illustrates how energy moves throughout an ecosystem as a whole, whereas a food chain solely depicts the flow of energy from one species to another.

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food chain shows about an animal that eat by other animal but food web is related to the food chain also, but it conect with the whole of the ecosytem.

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Food chains and food webs both provide energy for the animals that follow them.

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The food web is threatened, it can shake up the whole ecosystem.

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A food chain contains a producer, primary consumer, secondary consumer, higher consumer, final consumer and a decomposer.

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If a certain animals’ population gets lower, that means less food for other animals that means that the population of animals are decreasing and everything on the food chain will decline

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They both explain that animals need each other to survive. In every ecosystem, the plants and animals are connected.

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The food chain demonstrates the progression of energy within an ecosystem.

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Food chain describe how different organisms eat each other for survival. The chain usually starts with a plant and ends with an animal while, food web desribe how different ecosystem connected to each other.

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The food web provides a detailed information of the food chain within an ecosystem.

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Both show energy flow between living organisms and their interdependence.

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A food chain shows energy transfer between animals, while a food web illustrates energy flow in an entire ecosystem.

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A food chain is a repeating process of how organisms eat each other for survival.

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A food web consists all the food chain in an ecosystem.

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Food chain & food web shows a energy flow towards the organism/animals.

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In a food web it shows us the living-things inside a ecosystem, meanwhile for food chain it shows us living-things/organism that could be in a ecosystem or not in a ecosystem.

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A food chain is the process of the progression of energy from one living to another living thing.

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A food web is kind of like when all the food chains are connected and works interdependently in a ecosystem.

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Food chain is kinda like a shorter version of food web. It only travels or share energy from one animal to another animal above it. Whilst a food web is how the energy travels through the whole big ecosystem.

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They both share and travel energy. They both show how they are interdependent and connected well with each other.

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A food chain usually starts with a plant and ends with an animal

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If a part of a food web is threatened, it can mess up the whole ecosystem

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Both food chains and food webs have producer, primary, secondary, and tertiary consumers

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Food chain and food web both show the interdependence of living things in an ecosystem and how they interact with each other.

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Food chain is less complex than a food web. A food chain is in a shape of a straight line and a food web is in the shape of a web.

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They both have producer consumer and decomposer

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The food chain only give the energy 1 animal to 1 animal but food webs can give energy to all of the animal

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A food chain describes how different organisms eat each other for survival.

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A food web involves more than just who eats whom in the wild.

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They both show the concept that describes the feeding relationship among organisms in an ecosystem.

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A food chain is a chain that shows what eats what. But a food web shows all the food chain in one ecosystem.

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Food chain follows a single path, whereas food web follows multiple paths

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They Both flow of food and energy through organism

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A food chain is who eats whom and food web is all of the food chain in the ecosystem.

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Both food chains and food webs provide energy for living things. Both also have producer, consumer and decomposer.

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In a food chain, organisms only eat one type. Meanwhile, food webs are a collection of complex food chains.

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the difference is the food web is more complicated than the food chain