Energy flow and nutrient cycling are important processes that help ecosystems stay healthy and support life.
Source of Energy: The sun provides the main energy for our planet. It gives off a lot of energy—around 1.74 x 10^17 watts—that reaches the Earth.
Photosynthesis: Plants, which we call producers, use sunlight to make their own food through a process called photosynthesis. Each year, they create about 100 billion tons of organic matter.
Food Chain Transfer: Energy moves through the food chain in steps. When one living thing eats another, only about 10% of the energy from the first is passed on to the next. This is known as the 10% rule.
Nutrients: Important nutrients like carbon, nitrogen, and phosphorus move around in ecosystems in a cycle.
Decomposers: Small organisms like bacteria and fungi play a key role. They break down dead plants and animals, which returns nutrients back to the soil. When this happens, about 50% of the carbon stored in plants can go back into the air.
Importance of Soil: Good soil can be made up of up to 40% organic matter. This is very important for keeping nutrients available for plants.
Energy flow and nutrient cycling work together to keep ecosystems productive and strong. Without these processes, ecosystems wouldn’t be able to support many different kinds of living things.
Energy flow and nutrient cycling are important processes that help ecosystems stay healthy and support life.
Source of Energy: The sun provides the main energy for our planet. It gives off a lot of energy—around 1.74 x 10^17 watts—that reaches the Earth.
Photosynthesis: Plants, which we call producers, use sunlight to make their own food through a process called photosynthesis. Each year, they create about 100 billion tons of organic matter.
Food Chain Transfer: Energy moves through the food chain in steps. When one living thing eats another, only about 10% of the energy from the first is passed on to the next. This is known as the 10% rule.
Nutrients: Important nutrients like carbon, nitrogen, and phosphorus move around in ecosystems in a cycle.
Decomposers: Small organisms like bacteria and fungi play a key role. They break down dead plants and animals, which returns nutrients back to the soil. When this happens, about 50% of the carbon stored in plants can go back into the air.
Importance of Soil: Good soil can be made up of up to 40% organic matter. This is very important for keeping nutrients available for plants.
Energy flow and nutrient cycling work together to keep ecosystems productive and strong. Without these processes, ecosystems wouldn’t be able to support many different kinds of living things.