BIOWEB
nverdae@nvcc.edu
Emma Erdahl, Associate Professor of Biology
Northern Virginia Community College
Revised 8/23/00
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13. Which of the following statements can be made about the usual distribution of biomass in an ecosystem? a. The biomass of secondary consumers is generally greater than the biomass of primary consumers. b. The biomass of producers is generally greater than the biomass of primary consumers. c. The biomass of secondary consumers is generally greater than the biomass of producers. d. The biomass of producers is less than the combined biomass of primary and secondary consumers. Only about ten percent of the energy tied up at the producer level is available to primary consumers. In an aquatic community where the life span of the producers is very short compared to the consumers, an inverted biomass pyramid may result. The ecological pyramids are discussed on pages 836-839 in your text. This is often the most difficult concept in unit 1 for students to understand. If you don't understand this, you might want to discuss this in the Class Forum. |
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