AP BIOLOGY

Detailed explanation-1: -Producers, also known as autotrophs, make their own food. They make up the first level of every food chain. Autotrophs are usually plants or one-celled organisms. Nearly all autotrophs use a process called photosynthesis to create “food” (a nutrient called glucose) from sunlight, carbon dioxide, and water.

Detailed explanation-2: -Heterotrophs are known as consumers because they consume producers or other consumers. Dogs, birds, fish, and humans are all examples of heterotrophs. Heterotrophs occupy the second and third levels in a food chain, a sequence of organisms that provide energy and nutrients for other organisms.

Detailed explanation-3: -An autotroph is an organism that can produce its own food using light, water, carbon dioxide, or other chemicals. Because autotrophs produce their own food, they are sometimes called producers. Plants are the most familiar type of autotroph, but there are many different kinds of autotrophic organisms.

Detailed explanation-4: -Plants in an ecosystem are called producers.

Detailed explanation-5: -There are also bacteria that use chemical processes to produce food. They get their energy from sources other than the sun, but they are still called producers. This process is known as chemosynthesis, and is common in ecosystems without sunlight, such as certain marine ecosystems.