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BIOL - Energy Flow And Loss 

Ecosystem , Energy Flow And Energy Loss , Biology - IBDP | GCE | AL | HKDSE | AP Biology

April 20, 2020

Energy flow between organisms and Energy loss in the ecosystem are quite simple concepts. It might seem difficult at first  but no worries let's tackle it together. 😃

How is Energy transfered through organisms in an ecosystem?🤤

Lets refer to the above photo, the Sun is an ultimate source of energy to all organisms. The Light Energy is absorbed by Green plants (grass) and the light energy is converted to chemical energy by a process called Photosynthesis. The chemical energy stored as organic molecules in plants is passed to the animals which feeds on plants (grasshopper). The chemical energy stored as organic molecules in the herbivores (grasshoppers) is passed to other animals which feeds on other animals (shrew or owl).🌈

Energy is mainly transferred as food and is achieved by feeding relationship

Now that we have cleared the concept of energy flow lets move onto energy loss. We can do it!

How energy is lost in the ecosystem?

When energy is being transferred among organisms only around 10% energy is transferred.

You can refer to above picture for better understanding. 

1. Respiration - The most common way energy is lost is as heat. Every organism carries out respiration hence energy can be lost as heat through respiration to the surrounding. 💨

2. Uneaten Organisms - energy in the uneaten organisms is lost in the form of dead bodies. Sometimes organisms cannot finish eating the whole organism, example a caterpillar only eats leaves in the tree they don't eat the branches or stems and hence there's a lot of uneaten parts and more energy is lost. ♥️

3. Egestion and Excretion - Energy can be lost as faeces and excretory waste of animals 💩

As a lot of energy is lost, a continuous supply of energy from the Sun is essential.🌞

Yayyyy We Did It!

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