Ecosystem Dynamics and Food Webs

The video explores the energy dynamics within ecosystems, focusing on producers, consumers, and decomposers. It explains the roles of autotrophs and heterotrophs, the inefficiency of energy transfer across trophic levels, and the complexity of food webs. The importance of decomposers and the impact of changes in the ecosystem are also discussed.

What is the primary role of producers in an ecosystem?

• To decompose organic matter

• To consume other organisms for energy

• To produce energy through photosynthesis

• To compete with other producers for resources

Which of the following is an example of a chemoautotroph?

• Bacteria near hydrothermal vents

• Photosynthetic plants

• Coral reefs

• Algae in ponds

Why is energy transfer between trophic levels considered inefficient?

• Energy is transferred at 100% efficiency

• Only 10% of energy is transferred to the next level

• Energy is stored indefinitely at each level

• Energy is completely lost at each level

What is the primary diet of primary consumers?

• Apex predators

• Other consumers

• Producers

• Decomposers

In a food chain, what does the direction of the arrow indicate?

• The direction of sunlight

• The direction of organism movement

• The direction of water flow

• The direction of energy flow

What distinguishes detritivores from saprophytes?

• Saprophytes are apex predators

• Detritivores consume living organisms

• Detritivores ingest and internally digest dead matter

• Saprophytes ingest food internally

Why are decomposers rarely shown in food chains?

• They only feed on apex predators

• They are not important in ecosystems

• They feed on any trophic level when organisms die

• They only feed on producers

What is a food web?

• A group of unrelated food chains

• A diagram showing only producers

• A single linear pathway of energy flow

• A complex network of interrelated food chains

What might happen if a pesticide eliminated all grasshoppers in an ecosystem?

• Decrease in squirrel population

• Increase in Blue Jay population

• Overgrowth of grass

• Increase in spider population

How does the removal of a species affect a food web?

• It has no impact on the ecosystem

• It disrupts the balance of the ecosystem

• It only affects the species directly above it

• It strengthens the food web