FOOD CHAINS part 1

 All living things need food to survive.

A FOOD CHAIN shows how each living thing gets food, and how nutrients and energy are passed on from creature to creature. Below is a basic example of a food chain.

The SUN is usually seen as the beginning of most food chains.

Nearly all of the energy used by living things on earth to survive originally came from the sun.

PRODUCERS, which are plants, produce their own food from sun, water, air (carbon dioxide), and soil through a process of photosynthesis.

CONSUMERS , which are usually animals, consume other plants and animals. 

An HERBIVORE only eats plants. 

A CARNIVORE only eats meat. 

An OMNIVORE eats both plants and animals.

DECOMPOSERS , which include fungi, bacteria, and worms, eat decaying plants and animals, and decompose them back into soil. The soil can then be used by plants to grow.

Remember that many FOOD CHAINS make up a FOOD WEB.

Below is one example.

See how many different food chains can make up a food web?

Source : http://www.cserc.org/main/games/buildafoodchain/index.html

http://studyjams.scholastic.com/studyjams/jams/science/ecosystems/food-chains.htm