Name
:
Ecologists
are
scientists
who
study
ecosystems
.
Ecosystems
are
communities
of
living
things
,
like
plants
and
animals
,
and
non
-
living
things
,
like
rocks
and
soil
.
Living
and
non
-
living
things
share
an
environment
and
resources
within
that
environment
.
One
part
of
an
ecologist
’
s
job
is
learning
about
what
happens
when
an
ecosystem
is
threatened
or
disrupted
.
Today
,
you
will
learn
about
ecosystems
and
what
happens
when
they
are
disrupted
.
Step
1:
Read
information
about
how
energy
flows
in
ecosystems
Read
the
information
below
.
Then
,
answer
the
questions
.
Ecosystems
rely
on
energy
.
Energy
comes
from
food
and
other
materials
that
help
living
things
perform
the
processes
of
life
.
Energy
is
important
in
an
ecosystem
because
it
provides
organisms
with
the
ability
to
grow
,
move
,
and
reproduce
.
Did
you
know
that
energy
flows
through
an
ecosystem
?
All
energy
in
an
ecosystem
started
with
energy
from
the
sun
.
The
sun
provides
energy
to
living
things
.
Energy
flows
through
different
levels
of
the
ecosystem
.
Introduction
to
Flow
of
Energy
in
Ecosystems
The
first
level
of
an
ecosystem
is
producers
.
Producers
are
organisms
that
use
energy
from
the
sun
.
They
use
some
of
the
energy
to
live
and
grow
and
they
store
the
rest
of
the
energy
.
Trees
and
grass
are
examples
of
producers
.
The
next
level
is
primary
consumers
.
Primary
consumers
cannot
use
energy
from
the
Sun
.
Instead
,
they
get
energy
from
producers
.
This
means
when
they
eat
plants
,
they
are
getting
the
stored
energy
in
the
plant
.
Primary
consumers
use
some
of
the
energy
to
live
and
grow
,
and
they
store
the
rest
of
the
energy
.
For
example
,
rabbits
and
deer
are
primary
consumers
because
they
eat
grass
.
The
next
level
is
secondary
consumers
.
Secondary
consumers
eat
primary
consumers
and
get
their
stored
energy
.
Secondary
consumers
use
some
of
the
energy
to
live
and
grow
,
and
they
store
the
rest
.
For
example
,
snakes
are
secondary
consumers
because
they
eat
rabbits
.
The
next
level
is
tertiary
consumers
.
Tertiary
consumers
eat
secondary
consumers
to
get
their
energy
.
For
example
,
owls
are
tertiary
consumers
because
they
eat
snakes
.
All
plants
and
animals
die
.
That
’
s
where
another
part
of
the
food
chain
called
decomposers
comes
in
.
Decomposers
eat
things
like
dead
plants
,
dead
animals
and
poop
to
get
their
energy
.
For
example
,
fungi
are
decomposers
because
they
eat
decaying
plants
.
Dung
beetles
are
also
decomposers
because
they
eat
animal
feces
.
Decomposers
eat
things
from
all
levels
of
the
food
chain
and
turn
the
things
they
eat
into
soil
that
helps
plants
grow
.
