Question 32
Feeding Relationships and Energy FlowIn a food chain involving a primary producer, a primary consumer as well as a secondary consumer, the sharing of trophic energy is in the form that the
- A.primary consumer has more energy than the primary producer
- B.secondary consumer takes up all the energy contents of the primary consumer
- C.energy is shared equally between the three groups of organisms
- D.secondary consumer gets only a small portion of the energy contained in the primary producer.
Show the answer and explanation
Answer: D (secondary consumer gets only a small portion of the energy contained in the primary producer.)
Explanation
Only about a tenth of the energy passes from one level to the next; the rest is lost as heat and waste, so the secondary consumer gets only a small share of what the producer trapped.