Food Web
A food chain is a simple feeding sequence that follows
the transfer of energy as one organism eats or consumes
another. For example, an Arctic willow plant (Salix
arctica) is eaten by an Arctic hare (Lepus
arcticus), which is in turn eaten by an Arctic
wolf (Canis lupus). The
arrows in a food chain illustration show the direction
of energy flow.
A food web is a series of interlocking food chains
that show the transfer of energy through various feeding
(or trophic) levels in an ecosystem. Starting with
plants (producers), the energy flows to the herbivores
(plant-eaters) and then on to the predators (meat-eaters).
Decomposers (organisms that eat dead or waste plant
or animal material), scavengers (larger organisms that
eat dead animal remains) and parasites (organisms that
feed on living plants or animals) are also part of
a food web.
This Arctic food web focuses on the plants and animals
most closely connected to Arctic hares in the Far North.
In a food web for Newfoundland and Labrador, other
species such as red fox (Vulpes
vulpes), coyote (Canis
latrans) and Canada lynx (Lynx
canadensis) would replace some of the Arctic species. |
 |
 Part
of an Arctic food web. Enlarge the image to see how this
food chain fits into a larger food web. |
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