Trophic Levels
Biology: Edexcel IGCSE, topic 5.1.11
Food Chains and Trophic Levels
Food chains show feeding relationships and energy flows within a biological community. An organism’s trophic level describes where it fits into a food chain. Trophic levels are given numbers:
Food chain: level 1
- At the base of all food chains, there are green plants and algae.
- These are called producers and use light energy from the Sun to synthesise (make) their own food.
Food chain: level 2
- Herbivores that eat green plants and/or algae are called primary consumers.
Food chain: level 3
- Carnivores that eat herbivores are called secondary consumers.
Food chain: level 4
- Carnivores that eat other carnivores are called tertiary consumers.
Test yourself on Trophic Levels
What comes at the base of all food chains?