Question

At each level of the energy pyramid, 90% of the energy received from the lower level is used for life processes. Only 10% is stored and can be passed to the next level. Which of the following statements is correct?

a. One snake can feed many hawks.
b. There must be the same number of plants and animals.
c. Hawks should eat grass to obtain the most energy.
d. Producers are the most nimerous group of organisms.

Answer 1

The correct answer to the question is that producers are the most numerous group of organisms in an ecosystem, due to the significant energy loss at each trophic level in the energy pyramid.

Step-by-step explanation:

The correct statement regarding the energy transfer in an ecological pyramid is that producers are the most numerous group of organisms. This is because of the energy loss at each trophic level, with approximately 90% of the energy being used for life processes or lost as heat, and only about 10% of the energy being stored and passed to the next level. Therefore, it takes a large number of producers at the base to support fewer primary consumers, and even fewer secondary consumers, and so on up the pyramid. This hierarchical structuring of energy pyramids means that there is a significant decrease in organism population size as one moves up to higher trophic levels.