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Question

Question
In 1-2 sentences, explain why there are so many less individual organisms at the level labeled "5" than there are at the level labeled "1." Your explanation should include how energy flow affects the number of organisms at each level.

Grading Considerations:

Your answer should be in 1-2 complete sentences.
Your answer must include the name of the organisms at level 1 and level 5 when explaining your answer.
Your answer should should be supported by how energy flows through an ecosystem.

Answer 1

There are significantly fewer individual organisms at level 5 compared to level 1 because energy is lost as it flows through each trophic level. As a result, only a small amount of energy is transferred to organisms at higher levels, resulting in a smaller population size at each subsequent level. This explains why there are fewer tertiary consumers than primary producers in a food chain.