Producers and consumers

All living things need energy. They get their energy from food. Plants are called
producers because they make their own food. They use sunlight to make food by
photosynthesis.
Without plants, humans and all other animals would starve to death. This is because they
cannot make their own food. The only way animals can obtain energy is by eating, or
consuming, plants or other animals. So animals are called consumers.
FOOD CHAINS
Food chains show hw one living thing is the food another. Energy passes along a food
chain from producers to consumers as one member of the chain eats the next.
Eaten by
1. Seaweed is a producer. It producers food by photosynthesis.
2. Periwinkles are called first consumers because they eat weed.
3. Herring gulls are called second consumers, because they eat periwinkles.

Seaweed--)periwinkle--)herring gull
This is an example of a food chain.

Food pyramids
On the right is a food pyramid.it shows how consumers can get larger in size, but smaller
in number, as you go aong the food chain.
Many oak tree leaves--) feed fewer molth caterpillars--) which feed only one
sparrowhawk.

When a moth caterpillar eats a leaf it uses up some of the energy from the leaf for it self.
So there is less to pass on to a robin. That means the robin needs to eat several moth
caterpillars to get enough energy. So there are fewer robins than caterpillars.

Food webs
A plant or animal usually belongs to several food chains. For example, seaweed is eaten
by limpets and winkles as well as by sea worms. In this way food chains are connected
together to make webs. This diagram shows a food web in the sea.

Decomposers
Many fungi and bacteria are decomposers. They feed on dead animals and plants.
First they produce digestive juices which make the dead things rot, or decompose into
liquid. Then they absorb the liquid.

Decomposers are important because :

1. They get rid of dead animals and plants.
2. They release chemicals from dead things which soak into the soil and help to keep it
fertile.

Ecosystems
An ecosystems consist of a number of living organisms and their physical environment.
The living organisms and their non-living environment are interrelated and interact with
each other. There is a flow of energy from the non-living organisms to the living
organisms. There are a number of materials cycles-that is, exchanges of materials
between living and non-living parts. When we study an ecosystem we can therefore
analyse its components (the structure of the ecosystem ) and we can analyse its processes
(the function in the ecosystem).

There are six major components in an ecosystem :

1. Inorganic substances such as carbon, nitrogen, oxygen, water, carbon dioxide etc.
2. Organic compounds such as proteins, carbohydrates etc. The organic and inorganic
substances in an ecosystem regulate the work of the whole system.
3. Climate and other physical factors. Temperature, wind, light and rain are important
physical factors. They affect all the processes in an ecosystem.
4. Producers, only green plants are able to manufacture food from simple inorganic
substances. In the process known as photosynthesis green plants in the light of sun
combine carbon dioxide and water and produce carbohydrates.
5. Consumers, consumers obtain their energy from green plants. Herbivores, such as
cows and sheep, eat green plants but do not eat other animals. They are callec primary
consumers. Carnivores, such as dogs and cats, feed on other animals and are called
secondary consumers.
6. Decomposer, such as bacteria and fungi. Decomposers break down the tissue and
excretions of other organisms. Bacteria break down the flesh of dead animals. Fungi
break down plant material. They enable chemical sustances to return to the physical
envoronment.

Ecosystems
Please print out this image, fill out the blank spaces, give the page to the tutor.
The planktonic larval stage enables the species to disperse widely. In the open ocean,
there is non are where to hide from predators. Many plankton aretransparent, a good
camouflage in the bright upper waters. Many fish have larvae that drift in the upper
layers, where prey is abundant. Plankton often migrate to deeper waters by day and return
to the surface to feed at night. The cooler water of the dehts may help them to conserve
energy by day, and the dimmer light may conceal them from predators. These plankton
respond to light from above. If the light intensity is low, they stay closer to the surface. If
the water is clear and the light intensity higher, they sink deeper.
Some of the plankton live right at the surface. They usually have a strong blue
pigmentation. This may give them protection from strong ultra-violet light near the
surface, or camouflage them against predators above them.

Epipelagic zone
There are also large predators in the epipelagic zone. Tuna feed on squid and fish. They
are streamlined and can swim powerfully for long distances.
Marine mammals live in this zone. At first glance, fish and marine mammals look similar
but they differ in very important ways. Fish are scaly; marine mammals such as the whale
or dolphin are covered with soft skin. Fish breathe through gills; whales have lungs and
respire through a blowhole in the top of the head. Fish fins are spiny; whale fins are solid
and their flippers are bony. Whales evolved from land animals like the wolf, with long
legs for walking. They may have gone through a seal- like stage with short limbs for
walking or swimming. Now, they have only front limbs and a long, flexible backbone.

Seals are highly streamlined, with a good deal of body fat which helps to keep them
warm, and improves the smoothness of their streamlining. Seals and ses lions can spend
days or weeks in the water, feeding at sea, making sea journeys of thousands of
kilometers, and returning to land to breed.

The largest predators are whales. They are by far the most efficient of all the aquatic
animals, hunting and catching all their food in the water. They sleep floating on the
surface. Whales like dolphins, mate in the sea and bear their calves in the water. The baby
whale (calf) can swim as soon as it is born. A whale may cat 10.000 kg of plankton at one
meal, though the main constituents of a whale’s dict are shrimplike krill.

Mesopelagoc zone
In the mesopelagic zone, the temperature is more constant. Light intensity is low,
decreasing to almost zero at the bottom of the zone, and blue light predominates.
Many mesopelagic fish have mirror-like sides. These reflect only the available light, and
if there is no light, they appear black. In this zone, prey is scarce. Deep sea fish are less
streamlined than those of the upper waters. They have larger eyes, a, darker, more shiny
body and light organs along their sides and belly. Many of the fishes living in this zone
have light-producing organs called photo[hores. Some of the small deep-sea sharks have
tiny light organs all over the skin so that the whole fish glows with a greenish light.
Lantern fish are very common in this zone. These small fish migrate hundreds of metres
to the surface every night. Most have light organs along their flanks. They have fewer
photophores arranged in patterns specific to each species. They are thought to aid species
recognofication in deep waters. Luminous patches near the tail may be used dazzle or
surprise a predator.

Not all of the deep-sea fishes are luminous. Generally species with large eyes have
luminous organs while blind of small-eyed fish do not. Food is scarce in the inhabiting
this zone often have very elastic stomachs which enable thwm to swallow prey
severaltimes bigger than themselves. In regions where there may bie only one fish per
cubic kilometre of water, the predators cannot afford to ignore any source of food.

One fish that lights its own way in this zone is the deep-sea dragon. It has rows of
photophores arranged on its cheeks and running along the side of its body. Underneathits
mouth is a very long, thin barbel which is very sensitive to touch. Using its photophores
and its barbel, the deep sea dragon is well equipped to detect presence of enemies as well
as attracting prey.

Bathypelagic zone
The bathypelagic zone is by far the largest zone. It is an ancient, almost changeless
environment. Here it is constantlydark and cool and living organisms are sparsely
distributed. Many fish are black. Emitting light would make them conspicuous here.
Prawns are completely red at this depth, but appear black in the absence of light.

Some predators use light organs to attract their prey. The deep sea angler fish has a
luminous lure, and light organs inside its mouth, to bring prey closer. Many fish at this
depth have enormous mouths and highly distendible stomachs. Some can take prey
larger than themselves. This is extremely useful when meals may be few and far between.

Very few animals of the bathpelagic zone migrate upwards to feed. The sperm whale is
known to descend to dephts to hunt giant squid which may be 43 m long.

In the parts of the bathypelagic, where there are no luminous organisms, and where the
pressure is very high, many fish are colourless and have small eyes. They locate their
prey mainly by smell and by vibrations. Fast movement is not possible under high
[ressures and rigid skeletons would have difficuly in resisting these pressures. So deep
sea fish have reduced skeletons and muscles.