In a food pyramid, there is typically less biomass at the top (i.e., there are very few individual tertiary consumers, whereas there are numerous individual producers). In three to five sentences, explain this phenomenon, citing evidence relating to energy flow and how plants support ecosystems.(4 points)

Question

MAKE IT 3 TO 5 SENTENCES

Answer 1

At each trophic level in a food chain, only about 10% of the energy is transferred to the next level, with the rest being used for metabolism or lost as heat. This means that there is a decrease in biomass as you move up the food pyramid, with more energy being available at lower trophic levels. Plants support ecosystems by converting sunlight into energy through photosynthesis, providing the foundation for the entire food chain. As a result, there are typically more individual producers than tertiary consumers in a food pyramid.