Essay Example

In this web Gloeophyllum sepiarium and human beings have the highest trophic level; they are at the top of their food chain. The Alaskan paper birch receives its nutrients through photosynthesis and nutrients from the soil. The Gloeophyllum sepiarium is a fungus that gains its energy through decomposing dead organic matter such as dead wood and leaves that the Alaskan Paper Birch provides but the decomposition if dead matter is returned to the soil and recycles the nutrients produced by the tree through improving the soil.

Humans also use the tree for nutrition. The sap from the tree is edible and used in producing wine, beer and health tonics. The Black Bear and the lynx are on the next trophic level in the food web. As mentioned this web is a simple illustration but in this example the bear and lynx will gain their nutrition from the American Jewel Scarab. The bear’s diet consists of plants, meat and insects in this case the American Jewel Scarab. The bear will also eat the bark from trees and the edible sap produced by the Alaskan Paper Birch.

The web demonstrated here is known as a detrital web it contains plants, omnivores, carnivores and fungi the decomposers. All the organisms rely upon another for their nutrition and energy to maintain the circular food web of the ecosystem. The energy flows from one trophic level to the other. Each trophic level passes on biomass to the next level but pass on much less than they receive (Tscharntke & Hawkins, 2002). The Alaskan Birch in this web is known as a producer as it produces its own energy; food and glucose from photosynthesis producers have the most energy in a food chain, and is the first trophic level.

Humans, the Black Bear, the Lynx and Gloeophyllum sepiarium are all on the secondary trophic level. There are no examples of the primary level in this web as there are no herbivores. All organisms in the web are able to be decomposed by Gloeophyllum