Which concept describes how energy and nutrients flow in an environment?

The concept that best describes how energy and nutrients flow in an environment is the food chain. A food chain illustrates the linear transfer of energy and nutrients from one organism to another within an ecosystem. It typically begins with primary producers, such as plants, which capture energy from sunlight and convert it into chemical energy through photosynthesis. This energy is then passed on to primary consumers (herbivores), which feed on the producers, and subsequently to secondary and tertiary consumers (carnivores) as they consume the herbivores and other carnivores.

Each step in a food chain represents a level of energy transfer, highlighting the interdependence of different organisms within an ecosystem and how energy is transformed and flows through various trophic levels. This concept is crucial for understanding ecosystem dynamics, including how energy availability can impact population sizes and community structure.

In contrast, biotic factors refer to the living components of an ecosystem and how they interact, but they do not specifically outline the flow of energy and nutrients. Population dynamics focus on the changes in population size and composition over time, rather than the transfer of energy. Ecological succession describes the process through which ecosystems change and develop over time, often following a disturbance, but it does not directly address the