Trophic Levels and Energy Transfer

What do trophic levels represent in a food chain?

• The different types of ecosystems.

• The different levels of organisms based on their size.

• The different feeding positions of organisms.

• The different levels of energy transfer.

Tags

NGSS.MS-LS2-3

Which type of organism always occupies the first trophic level in a food chain?

• Primary consumers

• Secondary consumers

• Producers

• Decomposers

How do producers generate their own food?

• By consuming other organisms.

• By breaking down dead organic matter.

• By using photosynthesis.

• By absorbing nutrients from the soil.

Tags

NGSS.MS-LS1-6

What is another term for organisms that are the first consumers in a food chain and primarily eat plants or algae?

• Carnivores

• Herbivores

• Omnivores

• Detritivores

What do secondary consumers typically eat?

• Only plants

• Only producers

• Other animals

• Dead organic matter

Why do most food chains typically have no more than four or five trophic levels?

• There aren't enough different types of organisms.

• The environment cannot support more levels.

• Too much energy is lost at each transfer.

• Higher-level organisms are too large to be eaten.

Tags

NGSS.MS-LS2-3

Approximately what percentage of energy is transferred from one trophic level to the next in a food chain?

• 1%

• 10%

• 50%

• 90%

Tags

NGSS.MS-LS1-6

NGSS.MS-LS2-3

What is the term for a carnivore at the very top of a food chain that has no natural predators?

• Primary consumer

• Tertiary consumer

• Apex predator

• Decomposer

Which group of organisms consumes both producers and other animals?

• Herbivores

• Carnivores

• Omnivores

• Detritivores

What is the primary role of decomposers and detritivores in an ecosystem?

• To produce new organic matter.

• To consume living plants.

• To recycle nutrients from dead organic matter.

• To regulate the population of apex predators.

Tags

NGSS.MS-LS2-3