Question

1. energy moves in one direction through an ecosystem. what does that mean in your own words?

Explanation:

Energy flows from producers (like plants that use sunlight to make food) to primary consumers (herbivores that eat plants), then to secondary consumers (carnivores that eat herbivores), and so on. It doesn't cycle back in the opposite direction. For example, a zebra (primary consumer) eats grass (producer), and a lion (secondary consumer) eats the zebra. The energy from the grass goes to the zebra and then to the lion, but the lion's energy doesn't go back to the zebra or the grass.

Answer:

Energy moves in one direction through an ecosystem means that energy flows from one trophic level (like producers) to the next (like primary consumers) and then to the next (like secondary consumers) etc., and does not reverse its flow. For instance, energy from the sun is captured by plants (producers), then herbivores (primary consumers) eat the plants getting that energy, and then carnivores (secondary consumers) eat the herbivores, getting energy from them. The energy does not go back from the carnivore to the herbivore or from the herbivore to the plant.