Consumer ( food chain ) - wikipedia Consumer ( food chain ) Consumers are organisms that eat organisms from a different population. These organisms are formally referred to as heterotrophs, which include animals, some bacteria and fungi. Such organisms may consume by various means, including predation, parasitization, and biodegradation. Contents 1 Classification 2 Levels of the food chain 3 Importance to the ecosystem 4 See also 5 References Classification Consumers are typically viewed as predatory animals such as the wolf and hyena. However, herbivorous animals and parasitic fungi are also consumers. Some carnivorous plants, like the Venus flytrap, are classified as both. So are omnivorous animals. Levels of the food chain Within an ecological food chain, Consumers are categorized into primary consumers, secondary consumers, and the tertiary consumers. Primary consumers are herbivores, feeding on plants. Secondary consumers, on the other hand, are carnivores, and prey on other animals. Omnivores, who feed on both plants and animals, can also be considered a secondary consumer. Tertiary consumers, sometimes also known as apex predators, are usually at the top of food chains, capable of feeding on secondary consumers and primary consumers. Tertiary consumers can be either fully carnivorous or omnivorous. Humans are one such example of a tertiary consumer. Importance to the ecosystem Consumers have important roles to play within an ecosystem such as balancing the food chain by keeping plant populations at a reasonable number. Without proper balance, an ecosystem can collapse and cause the decline of all affected species. This will lead to a severely disrupted ecosystem and a nonfunctional consumer web. See also Food web Primary producers Autotroph References Jump up ^ `` Venus flytraps ' carnivorous ways enable it to do photosynthesis better ''. Cornell Center for Materials Research. 5 March 2008. Archived from the original on 22 June 2010. Retrieved 9 February 2012. Jump up ^ `` Archived copy ''. Archived from the original on 2009 - 10 - 07. Retrieved 2009 - 09 - 03. Ecology : Modelling ecosystems : Trophic components General Abiotic component Abiotic stress Behaviour Biogeochemical cycle Biomass Biotic component Biotic stress Carrying capacity Competition Ecosystem Ecosystem ecology Ecosystem model Keystone species List of feeding behaviours Metabolic theory of ecology Productivity Resource Producers Autotrophs Chemosynthesis Chemotrophs Foundation species Mixotrophs Myco - heterotrophy Mycotroph Organotrophs Photoheterotrophs Photosynthesis Photosynthetic efficiency Phototrophs Primary nutritional groups Primary production Consumers Apex predator Bacterivore Carnivores Chemoorganotroph Foraging Generalist and specialist species Intraguild predation Herbivores Heterotroph Heterotrophic nutrition Insectivore Mesopredators Mesopredator release hypothesis Omnivores Optimal foraging theory Planktivore Predation Prey switching Decomposers Chemoorganoheterotrophy Decomposition Detritivores Detritus Microorganisms Archaea Bacteriophage Environmental microbiology Lithoautotroph Lithotrophy Microbial cooperation Microbial ecology Microbial food web Microbial intelligence Microbial loop Microbial mat Microbial metabolism Phage ecology Food webs Biomagnification Ecological efficiency Ecological pyramid Energy flow Food chain Trophic level Example webs Cold seeps Hydrothermal vents Intertidal Kelp forests Lakes North Pacific Subtropical Gyre Rivers San Francisco Estuary Soil Tide pool Processes Ascendency Bioaccumulation Cascade effect Climax community Competitive exclusion principle Consumer - resource systems Copiotrophs Dominance Ecological network Ecological succession Energy quality Energy Systems Language f - ratio Feed conversion ratio Feeding frenzy Mesotrophic soil Nutrient cycle Oligotroph Paradox of the plankton Trophic cascade Trophic mutualism Trophic state index Defense, counter Animal coloration Antipredator adaptations Camouflage Deimatic behaviour Herbivore adaptations to plant defense Mimicry Plant defense against herbivory Predator avoidance in schooling fish Ecology : Modelling ecosystems : Other components Population ecology Abundance Allee effect Depensation Ecological yield Effective population size Intraspecific competition Logistic function Malthusian growth model Maximum sustainable yield Overpopulation in wild animals Overexploitation Population cycle Population dynamics Population modeling Population size Predator -- prey ( Lotka -- Volterra ) equations Recruitment Resilience Small population size Stability Species Biodiversity Density - dependent inhibition Ecological effects of biodiversity Ecological extinction Endemic species Flagship species Gradient analysis Indicator species Introduced species Invasive species Latitudinal gradients in species diversity Minimum viable population Neutral theory Occupancy -- abundance relationship Population viability analysis Priority effect Rapoport 's rule Relative abundance distribution Relative species abundance Species diversity Species homogeneity Species richness Species distribution Species - 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Question: who are the consumers in a food chain
Answer: organisms that eat organisms from a different population