Grazing Food Chain: Definition, Food Chain, Examples, Characteristics, Types, Energy Flow, and Fun Facts

Grazing Food Chain Overview

A grazing food chain is a form of the food chain in which energy is obtained at the lowest trophic level by photosynthesis. The grazing food chain begins with producers such as green plants that manufacture their own food through photosynthesis and then progresses from herbivores to carnivores. The sun provides energy for the grazing food chain.

What is a Food Chain?

There are several sorts of living species in an ecosystem, including plant animals, birds, insects, reptiles, and other species, all of which rely on one another for food and energy. A food chain is formed by the transfer of nutrients and energy between different living creatures at distinct trophic levels. Overall, a food chain describes the sequence or continuity of events within an ecosystem in which a live species consumes other creatures, which then prey on another larger organism. Every level in a food chain is referred to as a "trophic level." The continuous stages in a food chain begin at the bottom with producers, followed by primary consumers, secondary consumers, and tertiary consumers. The food chain is divided into two groups based on the amount of energy produced-

1. Grazing Food Chain
2. Detritus Food Chain

What is Grazing Food Chain?

A grazing food chain is a form of the food chain in which energy is obtained from photosynthesis. The producers - plants - are the initial point in this food chain, and the first energy transfer is from plants to herbivores. The grazing food chain is important in the transmission of energy flow in an aquatic habitat.

Grazing Food Chain Examples

This type of food chain is dependent on the acquisition of energy by autotrophic plants and the transfer of this energy to herbivores. The phytoplankton is eaten by zooplankton, which is subsequently eaten by fish or grasses, which are then eaten by rabbits, and the rabbit is eventually devoured by a fox.

1. Grazing Food Chain (Predator) in an Aquatic Ecosystem

2. Grazing Food Chain (Parasitic) in a Terrestrial Ecosystem

3. Grazing Food Chain (Predator) in a Terrestrial Ecosystem

Characteristics of the Grazing Food Chain

The following are the characteristics of the grazing food chain-

1. The grazing food chain is heavily reliant on the sun, which serves as the major source of energy in this food chain.
2. This food chain is influenced by a variety of circumstances, including plant oxidation, viral infection, and plant deterioration caused by increased water flow.
3. This food chain is always useful for adding energy to the environment and fixing inorganic nitrogen in the soil.
4. This food chain includes every macroscopic creature, which implies all species that can be seen with the naked eye.

Types of Grazing Food Chains

There are primarily two kinds of grazing food chains, which are as follows-

Predator Chain

The creatures that grow in size include lions, tigers, sharks, and snakes. Depending on their position in the food chain, predators can potentially become prey for other big animals. A snake, for example, is a predator to a mouse but prey to a hawk.

Parasitic Chain

The parasitic chain is a succession of creatures that gradually shrink in size. Producers, for example, are devoured by herbivores, who are infected with parasites, and these parasites are consumed by hyperparasites. Another example of a parasitic food chain arises when fruit-eating birds devour trees. These birds later graze on lice and other insects.

Read more about Gemmules.

Energy Flow in the Grazing Food Chain

The flow of energy in the grazing food chain is as follows-

1. Trophic levels, which signify an organism's place in the food chain, are a depiction of energy flow in an ecosystem.
2. The food chain's energy flow is unidirectional.
3. Because of heat generation at each trophic level, energy will decrease at each level.
4. Thus, energy loss is widespread throughout the food chain, resulting in just a few trophic levels (beyond those levels, no creature will get an appropriate quantity of energy to survive).

Read more about Thallophyta, Bryophyta, and Pteridophyta.

Difference between the Grazing Food Chain and Detritus 

In the following ways, the grazing food chain differs from the debris food chain-

1. In the grazing food chain, photosynthetic organisms are the major source of food, whereas decomposers that feed on decaying materials are at the bottom of the food chain.
2. The sun is the principal source of energy in the grazing food chain, while energy from dead creatures is the predominant source of energy in the detritus food chain.
3. The grass food chain contributes energy to the environment, but the detritus food chain consumes energy from debris.
4. The grazing food chain is responsible for fixing inorganic nitrogen, whereas the detritus food chain is responsible for fixing inorganic nutrients.
5. The grazing food chain includes all macroscopic creatures, whereas the detritus food chain includes both macro and microscopic organisms.

Father Related Articles-

Father of Botany

Father of Science

Father of Biology

Father of Zoology

Fun Facts about the Grazing Food Chain

1. Al-Jahiz, an Arab scholar and philosopher, was the first to establish the notion of the food chain in the 10th century. 
2. A keystone lineage or species exists in food webs.
3. A keystone species is one that has a significant impact on the surrounding ecosystem. 
4. It can have an immediate impact on the food chain. 
5. In addition to the concepts of food cycles, food chains, and food size.
6. Keystone species prevent herbivores from devouring or using all of the vegetation in their area, thereby averting catastrophic extinction.
7. Later, in 1927, Charles Elton's book "Animal Ecology" was released, which helped popularize the notions. 
8. The destruction of keystone species can upset the balance of the entire food chain.
9. The word "food web" was later revived by the term "food cycle."

Related Articles-

Courses after 12th Science Biology

Multidisciplinary Nature of Environmental Studies

Living Things Definition

Points to Remember

1. The food chain depicts the transmission of energy from one creature to another through the consumption of food.
2. Grazing food chains and detritus food chains are two types of food chains.
3. Autotrophs are the principal producers of food in the grazing food chain, whereas dead animals are devoured by subsurface organisms in the detritus food chain.
4. The food web is the interconnectedness of numerous food chains in an ecosystem with varying amounts of energy flow.