Which term describes organisms that make their own food using energy from sunlight?

Which term describes organisms that make their own food using energy from sunlight?

• A. Producers
• B. Consumers
• C. Autotrophs
• D. Decomposers

Answer: (C)

Autotrophs are the organisms that make their own food using energy from sunlight. They capture light energy and drive photosynthesis, turning carbon dioxide and water into glucose and releasing oxygen in the process. This stores solar energy in chemical bonds and forms the foundation of most food webs, since these organisms supply the organic matter that others rely on. Plants, algae, and some bacteria are common examples. Consumers, by contrast, cannot synthesize their own food and must eat other organisms for energy, while decomposers break down dead material to recycle nutrients. Producers is a broader term that often refers to the same group (organisms that produce organic matter), but the precise label for organisms that use sunlight to build their own food is autotrophs.

Autotrophs are the organisms that make their own food using energy from sunlight. They capture light energy and drive photosynthesis, turning carbon dioxide and water into glucose and releasing oxygen in the process. This stores solar energy in chemical bonds and forms the foundation of most food webs, since these organisms supply the organic matter that others rely on. Plants, algae, and some bacteria are common examples.

Consumers, by contrast, cannot synthesize their own food and must eat other organisms for energy, while decomposers break down dead material to recycle nutrients. Producers is a broader term that often refers to the same group (organisms that produce organic matter), but the precise label for organisms that use sunlight to build their own food is autotrophs.