In three to five sentences, compare and contrast the flow of matter and energy in each trophic level for land-based ecosystems and marine ecosystems. How and why are they similar, and how and why are they different?
In both land-based and marine ecosystems, energy flows through trophic levels in a similar manner. Producers, such as plants on land and phytoplankton in the water, receive energy from the sun through photosynthesis. Herbivores, such as grazing animals on land and zooplankton in the water, consume the producers, transferring energy from one trophic level to the next. Carnivores, which feed on herbivores or other carnivores, occupy higher trophic levels. However, the primary difference lies in the sources of energy and the associated matter. Land ecosystems rely on terrestrial plant communities and their decomposition, while marine ecosystems are majorly driven by photosynthetic organisms and the subsequent transfer of energy and matter through the food web.
