food chains

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  • food chains
    • primary producers
      • are able to produce organic materials from inorganic molecules e.g. plants
      • only 1% of sunlight that falls on plants is photosynthesised
        • this is because some light is the wrong wavelength, some light does not land on the chloroplast, some energy    is lost in heat
    • primary consumers
      • they obtain energy from primary producers
      • unto 10% of the plant tissue energy is passed onto the primary consumer
        • this is because a lot of the plant tissue is cellulose and lignin and cannot be digested,some parts of the plant are unable to be eaten
    • secondary and tertiary  consumers
      • are at the next trophic levels
      • up to 20% of the energy from primary consumers is passed on to the secondary consumers
        • this is because the tissue is mainly proteins and fats which are higher in energy and easier to digest, some parts of the animal cannot be digested.
    • decomposers and detritivores
      • bacteria, fungi, earthworms and woodlice break down dead organisms and faeces
    • at every trophic level molecules are used in respiration to produce ATP which is used for muscle contraction and active transport

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