Food web – Within the biosphere – the largest known ecosystem – there are countless smaller ecosystems; in each of them, biotic and abiotic factors interact, influencing each other. Each of the living beings has a role in the ecosystem to which it belongs. There is a cycle in which organic matter is transferred from one trophic level to another. This cycle of transfer of organic matter is called the food chain and, finally, the interconnection between food chains is the food web.
ecosystem
An ecosystem is a set, in balance, composed of a physical environment and the living beings that inhabit it.
abiotic factors
Abiotic factors are the non-living components of an ecosystem:
-solar radiation;
-heat;
-light.
-Water;
-atmosphere;
-ground;
-chemical substances.
biotic factors
The biotic factors of an ecosystem are the living beings that compose it.
The living beings in an ecosystem are divided into the following groups:
– producing organisms ;
– primary or first order consumers ;
– secondary or second order consumers ;
– tertiary or third order consumers;
– decomposers .
Each of these groups is designated as a trophic level or food level.
Food chain
A food chain, which may also be called a trophic chain, is the cycle of transferring organic matter from one level to another within an ecosystem. It is the sequence of living beings in which some feed on those who precede them in the chain.
food web
In nature, the distribution of food within ecosystems is more complex than the concept of a food chain; a more appropriate denomination, therefore, is food web. A food web is the set of interconnections between the food chains of an ecosystem.
Autotrophs (producers), herbivores (primary consumers) and decomposers always occupy the same position in food chains. However, second-order or higher-order consumers typically participate in several food chains, playing different roles in each.
