Food Chains & Webs ​

Producers are the starting point in a food chain, but what’s a producer? A producer is an organism that makes its own food. Most food chains start with a green plant, because plants make their own food by photosynthesis. Some other examples include trees; They capture energy from the sun and combine it with inorganic, or nonliving, materials to make organic molecules. Grass uses sunlight, water, and carbon dioxide to produce glucose through photosynthesis. Algae; Converting energy from the sun and inorganic compounds into organic compounds which can be used by other organisms. Cyanobacteria; Uses photosynthesis and the Calvin-Benson cycle (CBC)3 to generate biomass using only CO2 and sunlight as carbon and energy sources. And Phytoplankton, which converts carbon dioxide and sunlight into organic matter through photosynthesis.

A primary consumer is basically an organism that eats plants and provides the energy needed for other types of consumers to use. Some examples include Caterpillars, insects, grasshoppers, termites and hummingbirds, all of which only eat producers such as plants (See Producer Definition).

A secondary consumer is a living organism that predates upon primary consumers; an organism that eats plants and provides the energy needed for other types of consumers to use (See Primary Consumer Definition). Some examples include Bears, which eat ungulates such as deer. Birds, which eat plant-eating insects. Wolves, which eat a mix of large and small-bodied herbivores.

Well, there isn't the time to write up all of the definitions, but in summary, tertiary consumers eat secondary consumers and below, quaternary consumers eat tertiary consumers and below, quinary consumers eat quaternary consumers below, and so one and so forth.