Yr 8 Science
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Plants in an ecosystem receive their energy from the sun, which has a lot of energy, therefore a lot of plants can be supported.
Plants use this energy to photosynthesise which produces glucose and oxygen. The plant also uses this energy for active transport to take things like nitrates from the soil. These compounds are used to make plant mass, but some of the energy a plant receives is used in other processes such as respiration, which means that the amount available to the next consumer is less.
A herbivore will eat a plant, but will only receive a fraction of the energy which the plant received from the sun, so the herbivore will have to eat numerous plants to make up the energy required. Some of the energy which a herbivore takes in is used in respiration, excretion etc so only a small amount is used for body mass, so even less energy is available to the next consumer, so carnivores receive less energy so less carnivores can be supported.
~Tweek
Plants use this energy to photosynthesise which produces glucose and oxygen. The plant also uses this energy for active transport to take things like nitrates from the soil. These compounds are used to make plant mass, but some of the energy a plant receives is used in other processes such as respiration, which means that the amount available to the next consumer is less.
A herbivore will eat a plant, but will only receive a fraction of the energy which the plant received from the sun, so the herbivore will have to eat numerous plants to make up the energy required. Some of the energy which a herbivore takes in is used in respiration, excretion etc so only a small amount is used for body mass, so even less energy is available to the next consumer, so carnivores receive less energy so less carnivores can be supported.
~Tweek