In living nature there are practically no living organisms that would not eat other creatures or would not be food for anyone. So, plants feed on many insects. Insects themselves are prey for larger creatures. These or other organisms are the links from which the food chain is formed. Examples of such “addiction” can be found everywhere. Moreover, in any such structure, there is a first initial level. As a rule, these are green plants. What are some examples of food chains? What organisms can be links? How is the interaction between them? More on this later in the article.
general information
The food chain, examples of which will be given below, is a certain set of microorganisms, fungi, plants, animals. Each link is at its own level. This "dependence" is built on the principle of "food - consumer". At the top of many food chains is a man. The higher the population density in a given country, the fewer links will be contained in the natural sequence, since people are forced to eat plants in such conditions more often.
Number of levels
How long can the food chain be? Examples of multi-level sequences are different. The most revealing is the following: parasitic larvae of flies are present inside the body of the caterpillar, nematodes (worms) are present in them, bacteria, respectively, in the worms, and a variety of viruses in them. But there can be no infinite number of links. At each subsequent level, biomass decreases by several tens of times. So, for example, an elk from 1000 kg of plants can "form" one hundred kilograms of its body. But a tiger will need 100 kg of moosecake to increase its weight by 10 kg. The number of links depends on the conditions in which this or that food chain of animals is formed. Examples of these systems can be seen in nature. So, frogs are a favorite food of some species of snakes, which, in turn, are eaten by predators. As a rule, in such a "sequence" of no more than three or four links. Such a "building" is also called the ecological pyramid. In it, each next step is much smaller than the previous one.
How is the interaction inside the ecological pyramids?
How does the food chain work? The examples given above show that each subsequent link should be at a higher level of development than the previous one. As already mentioned, the relationship in any ecological pyramid is based on the principle of "food-consumer". Due to eating by some organisms of others, energy is transferred from lower to higher levels. As a result, there is a cycle of substances in nature.
Food chain. Examples
Conventionally, several types of ecological pyramids can be distinguished. There is, in particular, a pasture food chain. Examples that can be seen in nature are sequences where energy is transferred from lower (simplest) organisms to higher (predators). These pyramids, in particular, include the following sequences: "caterpillars-mice-vipers-hedgehogs-foxes", "rodents-predators". Another detrital food chain, examples of which will be given below, is a sequence in which biomass is not consumed by predators, but a process of rotting with the participation of microorganisms takes place. It is believed that this ecological pyramid begins with plants. So, in particular, the food chain of the forest looks like. Examples are the following: "fallen leaves-rotting with the participation of microorganisms", "dead plant tissues-fungi-millipedes-excrement-fungi-tails-mites-mites (predatory) -predators-millipedes-bacteria."
Producers and consumers
In a large body of water (ocean, sea), planktonic unicellular algae are food for cladocera (animal filtering). They, in turn, are prey for predatory mosquito larvae. These organisms feed on a specific species of fish. Larger predatory individuals eat them. This ecological pyramid is an example of the food chain of the sea. All organisms acting as links are at different trophic levels. At the first stage are producers, at the next - consumers of the first order (consumers). The third trophic level includes consumers of the 2nd order (primary carnivores). They, in turn, serve as food for secondary predators - consumers of the third order, and so on. As a rule, ecological sushi pyramids include three to five links.
Outdoor pond
Over the shelf sea, in the place where the mainland slope more or less abruptly breaks off towards the deep-sea plain, the open sea originates. In this zone, blue and clear water is predominantly. This is due to the absence of inorganic suspended compounds and a smaller volume of microscopic planktonic plants and animals (phyto- and zooplankton). In some areas, the expanse of water is particularly bright blue. For example, the Sargasso Sea. In such cases, they talk about the so-called ocean deserts. In these areas, even at a depth of thousands of meters, with the help of sensitive equipment, traces of light can be detected (in the blue-green spectrum). The open sea is characterized by a complete absence in the composition of zooplankton of various larvae of bottom organisms (echinoderms, mollusks, crustaceans), the number of which sharply decreases with distance from the coast. Both in shallow water and in wide open spaces, sunlight acts as the only source of energy. As a result of photosynthesis, phytoplankton with the help of chlorophyll forms organic compounds from carbon dioxide and water. So-called primary products are formed.
The links of the food chain of the sea
Organic compounds synthesized by algae are transmitted indirectly or directly to all organisms. The second link of the food chain in the sea is animal filter. The organisms that make up phytoplankton are microscopically small in size (0.002-1mm). Often they form colonies, but their size does not exceed five millimeters. The third link is carnivores. They feed on filtrators. In the shelf, as well as in the open seas, there are a lot of such organisms. These include, in particular, siphonophores, ctenophores, jellyfish, copepods, bristle-jaw, carinarids. Among fish, herring should be classified as filtrators. Their main food is copepods, which form large clusters in the northern waters. The fourth link is considered predatory large fish. Some species are of commercial importance. The cephalopod mollusks, toothed whales and seabirds should also be referred to the final link.
Nutrient transfer
The transfer of organic compounds within the food chain is accompanied by significant energy losses. This is mainly due to the fact that most of it is spent on metabolic processes. About 10% of the energy is converted into body matter. Therefore, for example, anchovy, which feeds on planktonic algae and is included in the structure of an exceptionally short food chain, can develop in such huge quantities as occurs in the Peruvian current. The transfer of food to the twilight and deep zone from the light is due to active vertical migrations of zooplankton and individual fish species. Animals moving up and down at different times of the day are at different depths.
Conclusion
It should be said that linear food chains are quite rare. Most often, ecological pyramids include populations that belong to several levels at once. The same species can be consumed by both plants and animals; carnivores can eat both consumers of the first, second and next orders; many animals consume living and dead organisms. Due to the complexity of link relationships, the loss of a species often has almost no effect on the state of the ecosystem. Those organisms that took the dropped link for food may well find another source of nutrition, and other organisms begin to eat the food of the missing link. So in general, the community maintains balance. The ecological system in which there are more complex food chains consisting of a large number of links, including many different species, will be more sustainable.