To determine the relationships between the total energy in the different types of fish in the lake, we need to consider their interactions:
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Silver fish eat blue fish: This suggests that silver fish gain energy from consuming blue fish, which would decrease the total energy available in blue fish.
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Black fish eat both blue and silver fish: This means that black fish can gain energy from eating blue fish (just like silver fish can) and also from eating silver fish. Therefore, black fish have access to both blue and silver fish as sources of energy.
Given these interactions:
- The energy of blue fish is being consumed by both silver and black fish.
- Silver fish gain energy by eating blue fish, but they are not consuming the energy of black fish.
- Black fish have the highest potential energy since they can consume both blue and silver fish.
Taking these points into consideration, we can analyze the options presented:
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Energy of black fish > energy of silver fish > energy of blue fish: True. Since black fish eat both blue and silver, they would have the most energy, followed by silver fish (which eat blue) and then blue fish (which are being eaten).
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Energy of blue fish > energy of black fish > energy of silver fish: False. This contradicts the consumption dynamics shown above.
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Energy of black fish > energy of blue fish > energy of silver fish: False. Silver fish gain energy from blue fish, so they would have more energy than blue fish.
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Energy of blue fish > energy of silver fish > energy of black fish: False. This also contradicts the dynamics presented.
Therefore, the correct statement is:
energy of black fish > energy of silver fish > energy of blue fish.
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