What are the organisms that make up a food chain? How do different organisms live together in an ecosystem? Do different types of organisms cause different kinds of infections? These are some of the questions that scientists have been interested in for years.
An organism is any living thing – whether an animal or a plant, which uses its body organs (such as eyes, skin, muscles, and digestive system) in order to break down food. A food chain, in contrast, is the order of who eats what in an ecology (a community) for a means of obtaining energy. The food chains, or metabolic pathways, of human beings can be seen to include both plant and animal life, although plant-eating animals such as cattle and pigs predominate. In most cases, these animal-eating organisms are known as primary producers. A primary producer does not itself derive nutrients; rather, it provides food for secondary producers who, in turn, derive nutrients from the primary producers and so on.
In a food chain, primary producers usually dominate – at the top of the food chain and secondary producers at the bottom. The process of Photosynthesis is, at its simplest, a process that transforms sunlight into food for plants; however, in all actuality, the Photosynthetic organisms that create food to provide the energy needed for all aerobic life, including plants and even algae and bacteria in the ocean. The process is further divided into two different processes: Photosystems and Electro phosphate Enzymes. Photosystems are responsible for creating energy in the form of chemical energy, while Electro phosphate Enzymes are responsible for providing energy in the form of adenosine triphosphate (ATP), the chemical energy needed for life as we know it.
The trophic level is the level of the soil – where the plant derives nourishment; here, the organisms responsible for fixing carbon dioxide to form carbonate are called autotrophs. At this trophic level, there are two other levels, nutrient-fertilizing and growth arrest. The nutrient-fertilizing autotrophs at this level are called primary consumers, while those growth arrest autotrophs are called secondary consumers. The difference between the two is that primary consumers are not involved in the process of Photosynthesis; rather, they are only concerned with feeding the plants that they support. Secondary consumers, however, must somehow get their food through the Photosynthetic process.
As we see, the relationship between autotrophs – and the different trophic levels is complex and not well understood. It is generally accepted that plant growth is dependent on a complex network of interacting herbivores and predators. In the case of green plants, the key players are called primary consumers and secondary producers. The latter are the type of organisms that build the sugars and other components of the food we eat. In turn, these plants are supported by specialized predators, which are named herbivores.
Many organisms at this trophic level are involved in the food chain: They can be classified into three different groups: Crop Producers, which includes the common bean, maize and wheat; Herbivores, which include the carrot, cabbage, cauliflower, beet, melon, onion, potato, squash, zucchini, mushrooms, etc; and Scavengers, which include the little worm and snails, aphids, lacewings and spiders. The relationship between the various trophic levels and the relationships among the various food chains is complex and still largely misunderstood. Still, we can say that the plants that are at the highest level of the food chain are the primary producers, those at the lower trophic levels are herbivores and at the lowest level, the insects or mites.
In recent years, it has been proposed that insects may play an important role in the food chain because they consume less energy than the plants that produce proteins and so they help stabilize the metabolism.
