Question

Explain why energy flows but nutrients cycle within an ecosystem

Answer 1

Energy flow in an ecosystem is unidirectional. It means that energy which is absorbed by the producers from sun and is converted into chemical energy, always flow from a lower trophic level to a higher trophic level as in a food chain when herbivore consumes producers the energy is transferred from producers to consumers and so on. Some of this energy is assimilated some is used by the organism and some is dessipated in the environment but the flow of energy is never reverted, that is obviously a producer can not consume a consumer. Likewise the energy flows in an ecosystem from one trophic level to another and by the law of conservation of energy it can neither be created nor be destroyed only changes its form and at last is dessipated in the environment. Nutrients are circulated in an ecosystem in a cyclic form, it means the nutrients which are utilised by the producers through soil are again made available to soil after the decomposition of dead organic matter by the decomposers and from here they are again available for the producers for yet another cycle.

Answer 2

Answer:

ᑫᑌᗴՏTIOᑎ:-

Flow of nutrients through an ecosystem is cyclic.

ᗩᑎՏᗯᗴᖇ:-

The flow of nutrients through an ecosystem is cyclic as the nutrients move from one trophic level to another trophic level all the way up and then back down. The cyclic flow of nutrients occurs in the following manner:

• Producers/green plants which are present at the lowest trophic level manufacture the nutrients by the help of the sun's energy through the process of photosynthesis.
• These nutrients manufactured by the producers are passed on to the primary consumers/herbivores.
• The secondary consumers feed on primary consumers resulting in the passage of nutrients from the primary consumers to the secondary consumers.
• The tertiary and the quaternary consumers also obtain nutrients from feeding one or all of the lower trophic levels.
• Finally, these nutrients are transferred back to the soil from the higher trophic levels through decomposition. The process of decomposition is carried out by organisms such as bacteria and fungi.

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