A young snake eats and digests a mouse. The increase in the snake’s mass equals(1 point)

Question

Responses

the mass of the mouse plus the original mass of the snake.
the mass of the mouse plus the original mass of the snake.

the mass of the mouse minus the mass of waste produced by the snake.
the mass of the mouse minus the mass of waste produced by the snake.

the mass of the mouse plus the mass of waste produced by the snake.
the mass of the mouse plus the mass of waste produced by the snake.

only the mass of the mouse

Answer 1

The correct response is:

the mass of the mouse minus the mass of waste produced by the snake.

When an organism consumes food, it assimilates some of the mass for growth and energy, while some mass is lost as waste. Therefore, the increase in mass for the snake would reflect the mass of the mouse it consumed, adjusted for the waste it produced during digestion.