Does the amount of energy in the food chain increase or decrease?

Answer 1

Approximately only 10% of the energy from one tier of the food chain goes to the animal from the one above. This is because the prey uses the other 90% for maintaining heat, being able to move, reproduction, and digestion. This means that the predator has to eat a large amount of the prey to get the necessary amount of energy so they can do them processes. Consequently, as you get further up the food chain, there are less numbers of predators, as the prey cannot provide enough energy to sustain a large amount of predators. This is also why you will rarely find more than two predators in a particular food chain, e.g oak tree-aphid-blackbird-fox. this is because the amount of energy that a third predator would need to survive is implausible to be able to get it from the amount of food it would get from the foxes.

Answer 2

Not exactly sure what you mean, but the energy ON Earth increases because the amount of energy received from the sun's radiation exceeds the amount that escapes into outer space from our atmosphere. All the energy on Earth remains on it. If you are talking about the Earth moving through space, it cannot lose energy because the Earth's orbit does not have obstacles in its way. There is no friction in space.

Answer 3

Hello,

Let's use an example to help us get started. The energy is always started by the sun. (That is how all creatures of the earth use it. Without it we would all die.) Then photosynthesis takes place. In order to understand the energy process of an ecosystem you should know about this.

Process of Photosynthesis: (Skip if already know)

Photosynthesis is absorbed in the leaves by chlorophyll. This traps the light and makes the energy to make food for the plant. The plant also absorbs water by its roots. Carbon dioxide is entered through the surrounding air of the plant and oxygen is released in the air.

Anyhow, the energy given by the sun to the plant is given off in oxygen. The natural gas is released for the nearby animals to breathe and live for. The plant (depending on what type it is) may give off some fruit or other food for the animals to eat. Some organisms would eat the actual leaves! Then the plants energy transferred to the animal. (Through a food chain or web, you will realize that everyone relies on everything. And if something disappears or the food chain isn't stable, then some living things might become extinct if no change is made.)

Then the animal's feces are digested by the other centipedes. If that animal dies, than a predator of that animal will eat the meat of it and gain energy from it.

Important concept:

Energy is not begun or ended. Energy never dies.

Answer 4

Think of it this way: there was a time when there was very little life and now life permeates practically all corners of the earth. The manner in which minerals are incorporated by plant life, the matter of plants is incorporated by other plants and animals, and the matter of animals is in turn incorporated by yet more plants and animals--would indicate that much of this matter remains in circulation. There really isn't much of nature that goes to ashes (out of circulation). Instead, whether it be corpses or feces, mulch or otherwise plant/animal byproduct, it is ultimately a form of bio-available biomass that can be used by other forms of life in the ecosystem. Therefore the amount of matter in an ecosystem generally increases.

Answer 5

Energy is transferred from one organism to the next as organisms eat or are eaten.

Answer 6

amount of energy decreases as it is lost at each trophic level

Answer 7

energy decreases at each trophic level

Answer 8

It would decrease