Question

In energy transfer between trophic levels, an average of only about 10% of energy (or carbon) is transferred between trophic levels. What are the factors that affect:

A.) Exploitation efficiency (why isn't everything eaten?)

B.) Assimilation efficiency (why isn't everything that is ingested assimilated?)

C.) Production efficiency (what happens to all that assimilated energy?)

Please explain how and why. I need help!!

Answer 1

Energy transfer between trophic levels is inefficient. Only about 10% of the net productivity of one level ends up as net productivity at the next level.

Ecological efficiency describes the efficiency with which energy is transferred from one trophic levelto the next.

It is determined by a combination of efficiencies relating to organismic resource acquisition and assimilation in an ecosystem.

Ecological efficiency is a combination of several related efficiencies that describe resource utilization and the extent to which resources are converted into biomass.

Exploitation efficiency is the amount of food ingested divided by the amount of prey production ( In / PPn-1 ​​​​​​).

Assimilation efficiency is the amount of assimilation divided by the amount of food ingestion ( An / In) ​​​​​​).​​​​​​​​​​​

Net Production efficiency is the amount of consumer production divided by the amount of assimilation ( Pn / An ).

Gross Production efficiency is the assimilation efficiency multiplied by the net production efficiency, which is equivalent to the amount of consumer production divided by amount of ingestion ( Pn / In ​​​​​​).