Energy flow in the ecosystem, Science

Assignment Help:

Energy Flow in the Ecosystem

The principal source of  energy for any ecosystem is sunlight. All food materials that we or other animals consume are manufactured directly or indirectly by plants. Think of your breakfast, bread  is made of a cereal that  is produced from plant material, egg from hen which has fed on plant products; and milk from cow which has consumed grass or fodder derived from plants. In a nutshell, the energy that we obtain from plants either by  burning wood or by  eating them, represents the solar energy trapped by  the plants. We are dependent on the stored resources of solar energy. When we eat meat, we obtain energy that had been stored by plants several years before and then  taken up by an  animal like a goat through grazing. When we cut firewood for fuel, we obtain energy accumulated and stored by trees for perhaps a century or more. When we bum coal or petroleum, we obtain solar energy stored by  plant life, millions of years ago. Now  let us  trace the energy flow through an ecosystem. This is represented diagramatically in Fig.  

 

1349_Energy Flow in the Ecosystem.png

Notice that the energy from the producer to the last level has decreased considerably. The energy passed on to the next trophic level is represented by  letter E of  three different sizes, each by  its size indicates the comparative  amount of  energy. The arrows in the upper half of the diagram indicate  the loss of energy in the form of heat given out by different organisms. The arrows in the lower half  show the energy loss via the wastes secreted and energy trapped in dead bodies of  the organisms. Decomposers use these wastes and dead bodies as sources of  food and derive energy from them. They also give out some unused heat energy. Energy flowing through an ecosystem is thus first captured by  the producers. From the producers the energy passes to various consumers, via food. At  the end of the chain we  find that very  little energy is left for the last trophic level, because some energy is always lost in going from one level to the next. This loss of energy limits the number of trophic levelsin the ecosystem,  and so they are seldom more than five. This also clearly shows  that why  the steps  in a food chain are limited to four or five.  


Related Discussions:- Energy flow in the ecosystem

Determine the structural units of silicate clays, Determine the structural ...

Determine the structural units of silicate clays The tetrahedral and octahedral sheets are the fundamental structural units of silicate clays. They bound together within the cr

Observing sun spots, Observing sun spots Use the telescope that you mad...

Observing sun spots Use the telescope that you made in a last experiment. Set it up so that it points directly at the sun and focus it so that a clear and bright image of the s

What is database lock, Question 1 Database design plays important role in ...

Question 1 Database design plays important role in success of CDM. Justify Question 2 What is Clinical data coding? Why coding is required in CDM? Question 3 List

Aspirations, Aspirations: We often have to make decisions and choices a...

Aspirations: We often have to make decisions and choices about hdw  to spend our time, money and energy. Sometimes  the choices are simple like whether to wear a blue dress or

Define co-transport - secondary active transport, Define Co-transport - Sec...

Define Co-transport - Secondary Active Transport Determine If the two substances whose transport is coupled, move in similar direction, the phenomenon is known as co-transport

Composition of bile - liver and bile stored in gall bladder, Composition of...

Composition of Bile - Liver and Bile Stored in the Gall Bladder There is a slight difference between the composition of bile produced by the liver and bile stored in the gall b

Explain the radioactive proteins, Explain the Radioactive Proteins If a...

Explain the Radioactive Proteins If a sample of plasma is allowed to incubate with the radioactive iodine ( 131 I) for 30 minutes or more, some of the protein combines with iod

Determine if pore diffusion mass transport may be limiting, Consider the fo...

Consider the following data for ethylene hydrogenation to ethane in a batch reactor:                  C 2 H 4 + H 2 → C 2 H 6 The reaction may be considered to be first-or

Experiment to show that air has weight, TO SHOW THAT AIR HAS WEIGHT Dri...

TO SHOW THAT AIR HAS WEIGHT Drive a thin nail by the exact centre of a long rod such as a metre stick or a yard stick. Balance the stick by resting the nail on the rims of two

Explain the simple cells - primary visual cortex, Explain the Simple Cells ...

Explain the Simple Cells - Primary Visual Cortex They are most sensitive to lines oriented in a particular angle to the vertical. Simple cells probably receive a convergence of

Write Your Message!

Captcha
Free Assignment Quote

Assured A++ Grade

Get guaranteed satisfaction & time on delivery in every assignment order you paid with us! We ensure premium quality solution document along with free turntin report!

All rights reserved! Copyrights ©2019-2020 ExpertsMind IT Educational Pvt Ltd