In a grassland ecosystem, grass is the producer. The grass is eaten by rabbits. The rabbits are eaten by foxes. And the foxes are eaten by hawks. If the grass produces 83,721 kcalm2yr
of energy, how much energy will the apex predator receive?
In a grassland ecosystem, energy is transferred from one trophic level to the next with only about 10% of the energy being transferred. This means that the apex predator at the top of the food chain will receive about 10% of the energy produced by the grass.
Therefore, the energy received by the apex predator (hawks) can be calculated as:
Energy received by hawks = Energy produced by grass * 10%
Energy received by hawks = 83,721 kcalm2yr * 0.10
Energy received by hawks = 8,372.1 kcalm2yr
Therefore, the apex predator (hawks) in the grassland ecosystem will receive approximately 8,372.1 kcalm2yr of energy.