food chains
Who eats whom
A food chain is a sequence showing how energy and nutrients pass through an ecosystem—plants are eaten by herbivores, which are eaten by predators, and so on up to apex predators.
The term appears in discussions of ecology and environmental science: Pesticides accumulate as they move up the food chain.
In business contexts, food chains are restaurant companies with multiple locations operating under the same brand: Fast food chains dominate American roadside dining.
Organism that consumes others
stalk · ambush · forage · scavenge · survival · camouflage · pursuit · escape
One who makes things
- apex predatorUnpreyed-upon dominant hunter
- autotrophSelf-nourishing organism
- heterotrophOrganism needing organic food
- herbivorePlant-only consumer
carnivore · omnivore · decomposer · detritivore · scavenger · phytoplankton · zooplankton · algae
Interconnected organisms and surroundings
- habitatOrganism's natural environment
- biomeMajor ecological community
- biodiversityRange of life forms
- nicheRecessed wall space
keystone species · apex predator · interdependence · balance · web · pyramid · succession · community
Radiance from our star
- photosynthesisLight-to-sugar conversion in plants
- producersThose who create goods
- consumersThose who buy goods
- decompositionBreakdown into simpler parts
biomass · heat loss · energy loss · respiration · organic matter · nutrients · carbon cycle · chemosynthesis
Self-service food retailer
- grocery storeFood and supplies retailer
- franchiseLicensed business operation
- convenience storeSmall quick-access retail shop
- supplierSource of goods
distributor · wholesale · inventory · logistics · checkout · pricing · brand · outlet
predator
Organism that consumes others
kill · stalk · ambush · forage · scavenge · survival · camouflage · pursuit · escape · defense
producer
One who makes things
- apex predatorUnpreyed-upon dominant hunter
- autotrophSelf-nourishing organism
- heterotrophOrganism needing organic food
herbivore · carnivore · omnivore · decomposer · detritivore · scavenger · phytoplankton · zooplankton · algae · grass
ecosystem
Interconnected organisms and surroundings
- habitatOrganism's natural environment
- biomeMajor ecological community
- biodiversityRange of life forms
niche · keystone species · apex predator · interdependence · balance · web · pyramid · succession · community · conservation
sunlight
Radiance from our star
- photosynthesisLight-to-sugar conversion in plants
- producersThose who create goods
- consumersThose who buy goods
decomposition · biomass · heat loss · energy loss · respiration · organic matter · nutrients · carbon cycle · chemosynthesis · metabolism
supermarket
Self-service food retailer
- grocery storeFood and supplies retailer
- franchiseLicensed business operation
- convenience storeSmall quick-access retail shop
supplier · distributor · wholesale · inventory · logistics · checkout · pricing · brand · outlet · drive-through
- Nature ShowsPlanet Earth, Blue Planet, Frozen Planet, Our Planet, nature show
- kids booksworkbooks, activity books, primers, readers, young readers
- ecologyhabitat, ecosystem, balance, niche, water quality
- systemsecosystems, nervous system, computer system, immune system, circulatory system
- zoologymammals, reptiles, amphibians, birds, insects
- juvenile biologybiology textbooks, biology experiments, cells, life cycles, science fair
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