Trophic Levels (A-level Biology)
Trophic Levels
Food Chains
Stages of the Food Chain
- Trophic levels are stages of the food chain. We can use trophic levels to describe stages of the food chain. Each trophic level contains different organisms, playing different roles in an ecosystem.
- The first trophic level consists of producers. In the first trophic level, we can find a producers. These are usually algae or plants which can produce energy for the other trophic levels in the form of glucose.
- Biomass can be transferred between trophic levels. Within a food chain, energy is transferred. This is often through organisms from one trophic level consuming organisms from a trophic level below them.
- The middle trophic levels consist of consumers. As we move up the trophic levels, each one contains a type of consumer. These are named primary consumers, secondary consumers and so on, corresponding to the number of trophic levels in an ecosystem.
- The final trophic level consists of apex predators. At the top of the food chain, the final trophic level is found. The predators here are known as ‘apex predators’, as they have no predators themselves.
Figure: Trophic levels and pyramid of biomass
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