An organism that produces its own food through photosynthesis or chemosynthesis, forming the base of all food webs. These organisms convert inorganic compounds into organic matter using energy from sunlight or chemical reactions.
From Latin 'primarius' (first in importance) and 'producer' from Latin 'producere' (to bring forth). The term developed in ecology to distinguish organisms that create biomass from those that consume it.
Primary producers are the ultimate foundation of virtually all life on Earth! Without plants, algae, and certain bacteria converting sunlight into chemical energy, there would be no energy source for any other living thing to exist.
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