Is phytoplankton a decomposer or producer?

Is phytoplankton a decomposer or producer?

Phytoplankton are the tiny, plant-like producers of the plankton community. They include bacteria and algae that form the base of aquatic food webs.

Is phytoplankton a producer or primary consumer?

Phytoplankton are the tiny, plant-like producers of the plankton community. Zooplankton are the animal-like primary consumers of plankton communities. In turn, zooplankton then become food for larger, secondary consumers such as fish. Zooplankton include microscopic and macroscopic organisms.

Are phytoplankton secondary producers?

This process is called photosynthesis, and results in the phytoplankton converting naturally occurring carbon into protoplasm. For this reason, phytoplankton are said to be the primary producers at the bottom or the first level of the marine food chain.

What type of consumer is phytoplankton?

Zooplankton can move on their own, but their movement is overpowered by currents. Zooplankton may be herbivores or plant-eaters (eat phytoplankton), carnivores or meat eaters (eat other zooplankton) or omnivores, which eat both plants and animals (eat phytoplankton and zooplankton).

Is zooplankton a primary producer?

Phytoplankton are the primary consumers of the ocean; Zooplankton are the primary producers of the ocean. Zooplankton are at the base of the aquatic food web (primary consumers) so they would eat Phytoplankton that gets their energy directly from the sun.

Is Coral a producer?

Both a primary consumer and primary producer! Coral has a mutually beneficial relationship with microscopic algae which means it gets energy from photosynthesis during the day.

Is seaweed a producer?

Because seaweed is a primary producer and makes its food from the sun, many organisms feed on the kelp and then in turn feed other animals. While kelp is food for many organisms, kelp also provides shelter for many forms of sea life.

Are Zooxanthellae producers?

Symbiotic dinoflagellates (zooxanthellae) are dominant primary producers in tropical reef communities along with benthic algae (macrophytes), unicellular and filamentous sand algae, turf algae, sea grasses, and phytoplankton (Larkum, 1983).

Is phytoplankton a primary or secondary producer?

The phytoplankton are the primary producers of the pelagic zone of lakes and oceans . Accordingly, the phytoplankton is the base of the food chain. [Macrophytes and allochthonous organic material are also important, especially in small lakes.]

Is phytoplankton a decomposer a producer or a consumer?

A consumer Is an organism that get their food and energy by eating or digesting other organisms. Decomposers are the waste manager of the ecosystem. They break down dead organic matter. Producer: the producer is phytoplankton (farthest left). Phytoplankton is one of the major producers in the Arctic Ocean.

Is zoo plankton a producer?

In addition to linking primary producers to higher trophic levels in marine food webs, zooplankton also play an important role as “recyclers” of carbon and other nutrients that significantly impact marine biogeochemical cycles, including the biological pump. This is particularly important in oligotrophic waters of the open ocean.

Is a phytoplankton a secondary consumer?

Fish, jellyfish and crustaceans are common secondary consumers, although basking sharks and some whales also feed on the zooplankton. Phytoplankton are extremely numerous, and supply ecosystems with a huge amount of biomass and thus provide lots of energy within the trophic pyramid.