Tallgrass prairies are extremely complex. Around 80% is made up of grasses with up to as many as 60 species at a time. The other 20% of the vegetation is forbs or flowers of up 300 different varieties common throughout Kansas. When these plants interact with the animal life in the prairie, they form an ecosystem of amazing intricacy.
There are 4 parts of an ecosystem. They are:
Primary producers - The most important part of an ecosystem. Made up of plants, including flowers and trees, they use photosynthesis to nourish the next level of the ecosystem. They gain their energy only from non-living parts of the ecosystem.
Consumers - Consists of anything from insects to fish to humans. Obtain their energy from living organisms (primary producers). There are 3 types of consumers: carnivores - eat only meat, herbivores - eat only plants, and omnivores - eat both meat and plants.
Detritivores - Eat the dead remains of both consumers and producers. They include: micro-organisms such as bacteria, fungi, and larger creatures like earthworms and crustaceans.
Abiotic - Non-living elements of an ecosystem. They are the building blocks of the ecosystem, for they provide the energy needed for the other levels of the ecosystem to function. Some examples are: rocks, minerals, soil, water, the atmosphere, and sunlight.
There are many ways for different species to interact in the levels of an ecosystem (symbiosis). They are:
Mutualism - Both organisms benefit from the relationship. Ex. : Hummingbird and flower, digestive bacteria and humans.
Commensalism - One organism benefits from the relationship while the other gains nothing. Ex. : Cattle and cattle egrets, pilot fish and sharks.
Parasitism - One organism benefits and the other does not. Ex. : Tapeworms and humans, ticks and mammals.