Energy flow: Practice Questions

• a.Organisms at higher levels reproduce too slowly
• b.The sun does not provide enough light energy for more levels
• c.Top predators are too large to be eaten by anything else
• d.There is a large loss of energy between each trophic level

• a.Plants contain more energy per unit of dry mass than animal tissue.
• b.Livestock are more efficient at energy conversion than plants.
• c.Energy is lost at each trophic level, so a shorter food chain provides more energy.
• d.Livestock occupy the first trophic level in most agricultural systems.

• a.Chemical energy is converted into light energy by decomposers.
• b.Producers transfer light energy from the Sun into chemical energy.
• c.Energy is recycled from the environment back into the Sun.
• d.Energy is transferred from consumers to producers.

• a.Egestion of undigested cellulose by the primary consumer
• b.Respiration by the primary consumer
• c.Photosynthesis by the primary consumer
• d.Movement and muscle contraction by the primary consumer

• a.All energy is stored as biomass in the next trophic level.
• b.Consumers convert all food energy into new body tissue for growth.
• c.Producers capture nearly all of the light energy that reaches them.
• d.Most energy is lost as heat to the environment during respiration.

Write your answer out first, then check it against the worked solution.

Write your answer out first, then check it against the worked solution.

Write your answer out first, then check it against the worked solution.