Chains in the reservoir as a stable ecosystem

Nutrition plays an important role in any ecosystem. Food is a source of energy for the continuation of the life processes of organisms. Accordingly, in each ecological system food chains are formed . If we give them a definition, we get the following: a trophic or food chain is a relationship between animals, plants, microorganisms, according to the principle "food-consumer".

The structure is very simple. Representatives of the following link eat organisms of the previous link. As a rule, the number of links reaches 3-4 and only very rarely - 5. Chains of food in the pond, especially in fresh water, completely fall under the trophic and can be of two kinds.

Types of food chains

Chains of food in the community of the reservoir can be of two kinds. The past includes the pasture, the second - detritus. Both types of food chain are divided into several levels. The first is occupied by producers - plants that consume solar energy. At the second level are primary consumers - animals that consume vegetable food. The third stage is occupied by secondary consumers - animals that are consumed exclusively by plant-growers, and parasites of primary consumers. On the fourth there are third-order peasants and consumers - predators, parasites and bacteria.

Pasture feeding chains in the reservoir are characteristic of the upper layers, and the detrital feeding chains are characteristic for the bottom layers. But it is impossible to distinguish them clearly-they, like everything in nature, are interrelated. But whatever chains are present in the ecosystem, there is a general rule for them. Every trophic level (link) most of the energy that is absorbed with food spends on maintaining normal life.

Chains of food in the pond. Examples

In any pond, it is easy to give an example of the simplest food chain. Consider the ecosystem of Lake Baikal. Due to the diversity of flora and fauna, food chains in the pond are represented by several species. Since they are interrelated, some components of one can be replaced by elements from the other. The trophic chains of Lake Baikal are divided into two - epiplegial and bathipelagic. The first prevails at the coastal level and in the areas of mixing of water layers, the second is inherent in the bottom area.

The producers (the primary link) are various kinds of algae. The consumers of the first order are the epishura. This species of planktonic crustaceans acts as the main consumer of phytoplankton and algae and is zooplankton. Epishura serves as food for the next link - second-order consumers. This group includes macrogectopus (zooplankton) and omul at all stages of development. But if fish consume only primary consumers, then the macrogetopus consumes more and producers. In turn, these crustaceans serve as food for omul, gobies, goyomyanok and other fish. The final link is the seal, which consumes the representatives of the previous level.

Detrital power circuits

Any lake, pond or sea has a different depth in different parts of the occupied area. Detrital feeding chains in the pond prevail in the thickness of the water in which sunlight does not penetrate. As the producer are organic remains of plant and animal origin. The first-order consumers of crustaceans and deep-sea fish, as well as bacteria. These detritophages often become food for consumers of the first and second order of the food chain.

Variability in ecosystems

It is almost impossible to find a pond, salt or freshwater, in which each link in the food chain would be represented by only one species of animal or plant. Such an ecosystem is doomed to extinction, since the absence of one element leads to the interruption of the food chain in the reservoir. If each link is filled with several species of animals or plants, then such a system is stable, since the absence of a component is replaced or supplemented by another. Annual populations each year have a different number of individuals. And only due to the variety of species there is no interruption of the food chain and the destruction of the ecosystem.