All living things need food to grow. Food gives living things energy. Energy helps them grow.
Most living things on the planet are food for other living things. Small animals get eaten by big animals, and big animals get eaten by even bigger animals. We call this a food chain. Each living thing is a link in the food chain.
Plants are often the first link in the food chain. Plants use the sun’s energy to make their own food. Grasses and trees are examples of plants.
Plants, like grass, are food for insects, like grasshoppers. That means grasshoppers are the next link in this food chain. They are food for amphibians, like frogs. When a frog eats a grasshopper, the frog gets energy to grow. So the frog is the next link in this food chain. Mammals, like foxes, eat frogs for food. So foxes are another link.
The last link in a food chain is called an apex predator. An apex predator does not often get eaten by other animals. Bears are apex predators. They eat small mammals, like foxes. It’s rare for another animal to catch and eat a bear!
