plants get the energy that they pass along to the primary consumers in their food chains from solar energy.
plants get the energy that they pass along to the primary consumers in their food chains from solar energy.
where do plants get the energy that they pass along to the primary consumers in their food chains?
solar energy
bullet::::- solar energy is fixed by the photoautotrophs, called primary producers, like green plants. primary consumers absorb most of the stored energy in the plant through digestion, and transform it into the form of energy they need, such as adenosine triphosphate (atp), through respiration. a part of the energy received by primary consumers, herbivores, is converted to body heat (an effect of respiration), which is radiated away and lost from the system. the loss of energy through body heat is far greater in warm-blooded animals, which must eat much more frequently than those that are cold-blooded. energy loss also occurs in the expulsion of undigested food (egesta) by excretion or regurgitation.
energy flow (ecology)
within an ecological food chain, consumers are categorized into primary consumers, secondary consumers, tertiary consumers. primary consumers are herbivores, feeding on plants. caterpillars, insects, grasshoppers, termites and hummingbirds are all examples of primary consumers because they only eat autotrophs (plants). there are certain primary consumers that are called specialists because they only eat one type of producers an example of this would be the koala because it feeds only on eucalyptus leaves. primary consumers who feed on many kinds of plants are called generalists. secondary consumers, on the other hand, are carnivores, and prey on other animals. omnivores, who feed on both plants and animals, can also be considered a secondary consumer. tertiary consumers, sometimes also known as apex predators, are usually at the top of food chains, capable of feeding on secondary consumers and primary consumers. tertiary consumers can be either fully carnivorous or omnivorous. humans are an example of a tertiary consumer. secondary and tertiary producers both must hunt for their food so they are referred to as predators.
consumer (food chain)