In a food web, the energy flows from producers to which type of organism next?

In a food web, energy flows from producers, such as plants and phytoplankton, to primary consumers, which are herbivores that feed on the producers. This next step in the energy flow is crucial because it highlights the role of primary consumers in transferring energy that has been captured from sunlight through photosynthesis to higher trophic levels.

Primary consumers convert the energy stored in the biomass of producers into energy that can be utilized by higher-level consumers, such as secondary and tertiary consumers. This process helps to maintain the ecosystem, as it facilitates nutrient cycling and sustains various forms of life.

Producers initiate the food web by capturing solar energy and converting it into organic compounds, while primary consumers immediately follow as the first level of consumers, making them essential in the energy transfer process within the ecosystem. Other options, such as decomposers and competitors, play different roles in the ecosystem and do not represent the next direct step in the flow of energy from producers.