This Biology quiz is called 'Energy Loss in Food Chains' and it has been written by teachers to help you if you are studying the subject at middle school. Playing educational quizzes is a fabulous way to learn if you are in the 6th, 7th or 8th grade - aged 11 to 14.
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This middle school Biology quiz is all about food chains and the loss of both energy and biomass that occurs at each stage - from producers to primary and secondary consumers. A food chain shows how the organisms in a particular habitat depend on each other as a source of food. At the start of any food chain is a producer which is normally a green plant. It is called a producer because it produces its own energy and food from raw materials it finds in its surroundings.
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Following on from the producer are the consumers, so called because they must eat something else. The first of these are called primary consumers and they are herbivores as all they eat are plants. Animals that feed on the primary consumers are called secondary consumers whilst tertiary consumers feed on the secondary consumers. Secondary consumers are carnivores or omnivores, as are the tertiary consumers. At the opposite end of a food chain to the producers is the top predator.
Food chains are usually short, rarely containing more than 3 or 4 consumers. This is because there is a loss of both energy and biomass in each stage of the chain. The entire amount of energy and biomass for a food chain is contained in the producers - call that 100%. When this is eaten by the consumers, all of it is passed on. The primary consumer uses some of this energy for respiration in its cells which enables it to stay alive, move etc. The rest becomes part of the biomass of the primary consumer and is passed along the food chain; so less than the original 100% is available to the secondary consumers. This happens at each stage of the food chain and nothing hunts the top predator because it would take more energy than would be gained from eating it.
We can see the loss of biomass and energy by observing the numbers and sizes of organisms in food chains. The biomass of living organisms at each successive stage in a food chain can be represented using pyramids of numbers and/or pyramids of biomass.
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1.
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Energy for all food chains comes from what source? |
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[ ] |
Sun |
[ ] |
Moon |
[ ] |
Producer |
[ ] |
Consumer |
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2.
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The producer is usually what type of organism? |
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[ ] |
A fungus |
[ ] |
An animal |
[ ] |
A plant |
[ ] |
A bacterium |
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3.
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Which of the following statements about energy is true? |
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[ ] |
Energy is only ever created |
[ ] |
Energy is only ever destroyed |
[ ] |
Energy is only ever converted |
[ ] |
Energy is only ever killed |
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4.
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Which of the following statements about algae in a food chain is true? |
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[ ] |
Algae are always the primary consumer |
[ ] |
Algae are always the secondary consumer |
[ ] |
Algae are always the producer |
[ ] |
Algae are always the predator |
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5.
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How is most energy in food chains lost? |
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[ ] |
Energy in food chains is mainly lost due to death and decay |
[ ] |
Energy in food chains is mainly lost due to respiration and excretion |
[ ] |
Energy in food chains is mainly lost due to reproduction and breathing |
[ ] |
Energy in food chains is mainly lost due to reflection and transmission |
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6.
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Energy in which form is lost to the surroundings in a food chain? |
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[ ] |
Light |
[ ] |
Dark |
[ ] |
Heat |
[ ] |
Water |
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7.
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What happens to the biomass at each successive stage in a food chain? |
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[ ] |
It is increased |
[ ] |
It remains the same |
[ ] |
It is reduced |
[ ] |
It is all lost |
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8.
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Which of the following is not a way in which energy is lost from animals in a food chain? |
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[ ] |
Movement such as flying or running |
[ ] |
Inedible parts of the prey |
[ ] |
Urine and feces |
[ ] |
Photosynthesis |
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9.
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Which process in green plants traps sunlight energy? |
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[ ] |
Photosynthesis |
[ ] |
Reproduction |
[ ] |
Respiration |
[ ] |
Excretion |
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10.
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Which type of organism is usually found at the top of a pyramid of biomass? |
|
[ ] |
Herbivore |
[ ] |
Predator |
[ ] |
Producer |
[ ] |
Primary consumer |
|
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1.
|
Energy for all food chains comes from what source? |
|
[x] |
Sun |
[ ] |
Moon |
[ ] |
Producer |
[ ] |
Consumer |
|
|
2.
|
The producer is usually what type of organism? |
|
[ ] |
A fungus |
[ ] |
An animal |
[x] |
A plant |
[ ] |
A bacterium |
|
|
3.
|
Which of the following statements about energy is true? |
|
[ ] |
Energy is only ever created |
[ ] |
Energy is only ever destroyed |
[x] |
Energy is only ever converted |
[ ] |
Energy is only ever killed |
|
|
4.
|
Which of the following statements about algae in a food chain is true? |
|
[ ] |
Algae are always the primary consumer |
[ ] |
Algae are always the secondary consumer |
[x] |
Algae are always the producer |
[ ] |
Algae are always the predator |
|
|
5.
|
How is most energy in food chains lost? |
|
[ ] |
Energy in food chains is mainly lost due to death and decay |
[x] |
Energy in food chains is mainly lost due to respiration and excretion |
[ ] |
Energy in food chains is mainly lost due to reproduction and breathing |
[ ] |
Energy in food chains is mainly lost due to reflection and transmission |
|
|
6.
|
Energy in which form is lost to the surroundings in a food chain? |
|
[ ] |
Light |
[ ] |
Dark |
[x] |
Heat |
[ ] |
Water |
|
|
7.
|
What happens to the biomass at each successive stage in a food chain? |
|
[ ] |
It is increased |
[ ] |
It remains the same |
[x] |
It is reduced |
[ ] |
It is all lost |
|
|
8.
|
Which of the following is not a way in which energy is lost from animals in a food chain? |
|
[ ] |
Movement such as flying or running |
[ ] |
Inedible parts of the prey |
[ ] |
Urine and feces |
[x] |
Photosynthesis |
|
|
9.
|
Which process in green plants traps sunlight energy? |
|
[x] |
Photosynthesis |
[ ] |
Reproduction |
[ ] |
Respiration |
[ ] |
Excretion |
|
|
10.
|
Which type of organism is usually found at the top of a pyramid of biomass? |
|
[ ] |
Herbivore |
[x] |
Predator |
[ ] |
Producer |
[ ] |
Primary consumer |
|
|