a farmer wants to choose the most efficient way of producing meat. She compares the rate of food consumption of one steer and 300 rabbits (which have the same total mass). She measures their relative rates of converting the food into biomass. Copy the table below into your notebook. Make the calculations needed to complete the table, and then answer the questions that follow.

Animal | 1 steer | 300 rabbits
Total body mass| 590kg | 590kg
Food consumed
per day | 7.5kg | 30kg
Gain in mass
per day | 0.9kg | 3.6kg
DAys Taken to
consume 1000kg hay|"blank"|"blank"
Total gain in
mass after consuming
1000kg hay |"blank"| blank

a) is there any significant difference between the gain in mass by the steer or the rabbits?
b) which animal converts the hay into animal biomass faster? By how much is it faster?
c) Based on your analysis, which animals do you think the farmer should raise? Explain your answer.

To complete the table, we need to calculate two values for each animal: the number of days taken to consume 1000kg of hay and the total gain in mass after consuming 1000kg of hay.

To find the number of days taken to consume 1000kg of hay, we divide 1000kg by the daily food consumption for each animal. For the steer, this would be 1000kg / 7.5kg = 133.33 days (rounding to 2 decimal places). For the rabbits, it would be 1000kg / 30kg = 33.33 days (rounding to 2 decimal places).

To find the total gain in mass after consuming 1000kg of hay, we divide 1000kg by the daily gain in mass for each animal. For the steer, this would be 1000kg / 0.9kg = 1111.11kg (rounding to 2 decimal places). For the rabbits, it would be 1000kg / 3.6kg = 277.78kg (rounding to 2 decimal places).

Let's fill in the table:

Animal | 1 steer | 300 rabbits
Total body mass | 590kg | 590kg
Food consumed
per day | 7.5kg | 30kg
Gain in mass
per day | 0.9kg | 3.6kg
Days Taken to
consume 1000kg hay| 133.33 days | 33.33 days
Total gain in
mass after consuming
1000kg hay | 1111.11kg | 277.78kg

Now let's answer the questions:

a) Is there any significant difference between the gain in mass by the steer or the rabbits?
Yes, there is a significant difference in the gain in mass between the steer and the rabbits. The steer gains 0.9kg of mass per day, while each rabbit gains 3.6kg of mass per day. Therefore, the rabbits gain mass at a much faster rate.

b) Which animal converts the hay into animal biomass faster? By how much is it faster?
The rabbits convert the hay into animal biomass faster than the steer. It takes the rabbits 33.33 days to consume 1000kg of hay, while it takes the steer 133.33 days. This means the rabbits convert hay into biomass approximately four times faster than the steer.

c) Based on your analysis, which animals do you think the farmer should raise? Explain your answer.
Based on the analysis, the farmer should raise rabbits. Rabbits convert hay into biomass at a faster rate and gain mass at a faster rate compared to the steer. This means the rabbits are more efficient in terms of food conversion and biomass production. Therefore, from an efficiency perspective, raising rabbits would be more beneficial for the farmer.