AP BIOLOGY

Detailed explanation-1: -Animals that eat only plants are called herbivores (or primary consumers). Animals that eat other animals are called carnivores. Carnivores that eat herbivores are called secondary consumers, and carnivores that eat other carnivores are called tertiary consumers.

Detailed explanation-2: -Tertiary consumers are those that eats the secondary consumers (large predators). For example, owls that eat snakes.

Detailed explanation-3: -Moreover, a food chain usually consists of three types of consumers-primary, secondary, and tertiary consumers respectively. Herbivores are classified as primary consumers; secondary consumers are by definition carnivores.

Detailed explanation-4: -The food chain begins with a producer, which is eaten by a primary consumer. The primary consumer may be eaten by a secondary consumer, which in turn may be consumed by a tertiary consumer. The tertiary consumers may sometimes become prey to the top predators known as the quaternary consumers.

Detailed explanation-5: -Lions, tigers, leopards and other big cats are classed as tertiary consumers. Except for the leopard, the big cats are also apex predators. While the cats have no predators in their natural habitat, leopard is sometimes predated by lions and tigers.