4.

2 Energy flow

1. State the major source of energy in most ecosystems.

All green plants, and some bacteria, are photoautotrophic – they use sunlight as a
source of energy
This makes light the initial source of energy for almost all communities
In a few ecosystems the producers are chemoautotrophic bacteria, which use energy
derived from chemical processes

2. Outline how light energy is converted into chemical energy in carbon

compounds in organisms in an ecosystem.

Light energy is absorbed by photoautotrophs and is converted into chemical energy

via photosynthesis
■ This light energy is used to make organic compounds (e.g. sugars) from
inorganic sources (e.g. CO2)
■ Heterotrophs ingest these organic compounds in order to derive their
chemical energy (ATP)
■ When organic compounds are broken down via cell respiration, ATP is
produced to fuel metabolic processes

3. Describe how chemical energy in carbon compounds flows through food

chains in an ecosystem.

Energy enters most ecosystems as sunlight, where it is converted into chemical

energy by producers (via photosynthesis)
 ■ This chemical energy is stored in carbon compounds (organic molecules) and
is transferred to heterotrophs via feeding
Trophic Levels
The position an organism occupies within a feeding sequence is known as a trophic
level
Producers always occupy the first trophic level in a feeding sequence
Primary consumers feed on producers and hence occupy the second trophic level
Further consumers (e.g. secondary, tertiary, etc.) may occupy subsequent trophic
levels

4. Outline how energy released from carbon compounds by respiration is

used in living organisms and converted to heat.

Energy stored in organic molecules (e.g. sugars and lipids) can be released by cell
respiration to produce ATP
■ This ATP is then used to fuel metabolic reactions required for growth and
homeostasis
■ A by-product of these chemical reactions is heat (thermal energy), which is
released from the organism

Not all energy stored in organic molecules is transferred via heterotrophic feeding –
some of the chemical energy is lost by:
■ Being excreted as part of the organism’s faeces
■ Remaining unconsumed as the uneaten portions of the food

5. Outline how heat is lost from ecosystems.

The chemical energy produced by an organism can be converted into a number of

forms, including:
■ Kinetic energy (e.g. during muscular contractions)
■ Electrical energy (e.g. during the transmission of nerve impulses)
■ Light energy (e.g. producing bioluminescence)

All of these reactions are exothermic and release thermal energy (heat) as a
by-product
Living organisms cannot turn this heat into other forms of usable energy
This heat energy is released from the organism and is lost from the ecosystem
(unlike nutrients, which are recycled)
Hence ecosystems require a continuous influx of energy from an external source
(such as the sun)

6. Explain how energy losses between trophic levels restrict the length of food
chains and the biomass of higher trophic levels.

When energy transformations take place in living organisms the process is never
100% efficient
■ Most of the energy is lost to the organism – either used in respiration,
released as heat, excreted in faeces or unconsumed
■ Typically energy transformations are ~10% efficient, with about 90% of
available energy lost between trophic levels
■ The amount of energy transferred depends on how efficiently organisms can
capture and use energy (usually between 5 – 20%)

As energy is lost between trophic levels, higher trophic levels store less energy as
carbon compounds and so have less biomass
■ Biomass is the total mass of a group of organisms – consisting of the carbon
compounds contained in the cells and tissues
■ Because carbon compounds store energy, scientists can measure the amount
of energy added to organisms as biomass
■ Biomass diminishes along food chains with the loss of carbon dioxide, water
and waste products (e.g. urea) to the environment

Because energy and biomass is lost between each level of a food chain, the number
of potential trophic levels are limited
Higher trophic levels receive less energy / biomass from feeding and so need to eat
larger quantities to obtain sufficient amounts
Because higher trophic levels need to eat more, they expend more energy (and
biomass) hunting for food
If the energy required to hunt food exceeds the energy available from the food eaten,
the trophic level becomes unviable

7. Draw quantitative representations of energy flow in an ecosystem using

pyramids of energy.

A pyramid of energy is a graphical representation of the amount of energy at each

trophic level of a food chain
 ■ They are expressed in units of energy per area per time (e.g. kJ m–2 year–1)

Pyramids of energy will never appear inverted as some of the energy stored in one
source is always lost upon transfer
■ Each level should be roughly one tenth of the size of the preceding level (as
energy transformations are ~10% efficient)
■ The bottom level will always represent the producers, with subsequent levels
representing consumers (primary, secondary, etc.)
SOURCES:
https://ib.bioninja.com.au/standard-level/topic-4-ecology/42-energy-flow/pyramids-of-energy.
html