- Topic
- Ecology
Energy Flow in Ecosystems
In nature, there are many different plants and animals living together in places called ecosystems. Have you ever wondered how these plants and animals get the energy they need to survive? Well, it’s like a big circle!
Plants, like trees and flowers, use a special process called photosynthesis to make food from sunlight. They take sunlight, water, and carbon dioxide and turn them into food and oxygen. And guess what? This food is not just for the plants. It’s also for the animals that eat plants, like rabbits or cows!
When animals eat plants, they get the energy stored in the plants. But animals don’t just eat plants. Some animals eat other animals too, like lions that eat zebras. When animals eat other animals, they get the energy from the animals they ate. It’s like passing the energy from one animal to another!
So, you see, in an ecosystem, energy is always moving from one living thing to another. Plants get energy from the sun and make food. Animals eat plants or other animals to get energy. And when animals die, their bodies also provide energy for other plants and animals. It’s a never-ending cycle of energy!