Food Web Coral Reef Food Chain

The size of a population can determine how much competition there is between two species that share a food supply.

Food web coral reef food chain. Answer the intermediate consumers are the sergeant major flaming tongue snail bar jack grouper caribbean lobster bicolor damselfish polychaete worm cushion sea star and southern stingray. When two species are in a symbiotic relationships one of the organism relies on the other to live or for food. This starts with the photosynthetic organisms such as seaweed and zooxanthellae algae. This lesson covers the food web and ecosystem of coral reefs.

If the population of mackrels were to suddenly decrease at a rapid rate all of the other organisms that depend on it would suffer. So do some sea turtles parrot fish and surgeon. For a coral reef to stay healthy it needs inhabitants from each level of the food web. These trophic levels include.

In these relationships it could be beneficially or harmful to the one or two of the organisms. A specie can dramatically change the food chain by the population and what eats them and who do they eat. Crabs sea urchins and sponges all feed on algae. Most food chains in the mesoamerican coral reef run in similar ways starting with he sun and ending with a third level carnivore.

Well learn what a food web is and what coral reefs are and also take a look at a couple of specific examples of coral reef food webs. A food web is a system of interlocking and interdependent food chains. The trophic level of an organism is the position it occupies in the food chain. The coral reef food web is an important part of what makes coral reefs tick consisting of the major food chains and trophic levels associated with the diverse marine life that reefs are home to.

If the primary consumers of algae are missing a reef becomes overrun with algae and is not healthy. In each food web there are several trophic levels. What are the intermediate consumers in the coral reef food web illustration. Although food chains may seem much simpler they have their disadvantages.

The small fish would grow in population and there would be less and less food for them to consume. A highly diverse ecosystem such as that of a coral reef has a naturally larger more comprehensive food web.