7.4.2

Trophic Levels: Food Chains

Test yourself

Food Chains

Food chains are made up of:

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Predators

  • A predator is a consumer that eats other animals.
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Prey

  • Prey are the animals that predators eat.
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Apex predators

  • Apex predators sit at the top of the food chain and are not preyed upon.
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Decomposers

  • Decomposers are responsible for recycling organic matter within an ecosystem.
  • They represent the final stop for all food chains.
  • They break down dead material by secreting (producing) enzymes.
  • The enzymes partly digest the waste products, producing small and soluble food molecules.
  • These small soluble molecules can then diffuse into the decomposer.

Jump to other topics

1Cell Biology

1.1What's in Cells?

1.2Cell Division

1.3Transport in Cells

2Organisation

2.1Principles of Organisation

2.2Enzymes

2.3Circulatory System

2.4Non-Communicable Diseases

2.5Plant Tissues, Organs & Systems

3Infection & Response

4Bioenergetics

5Homeostasis & Response

5.1Homeostasis

5.2The Human Nervous System

5.3Hormonal Coordination in Humans

5.4Plant Hormones

6Inheritance, Variation & Evolution

7Ecology

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