Scientists compare two food chains in neighbouring farmland habitats. The biomass of cereal plants and mice is the same in both habitats.
Habitat A: cereal plants → mice → snakes → buzzards
Habitat B: cereal plants → mice → buzzards
Habitat B supports a greater biomass of buzzards.
Which statement explains why habitat B supports a greater biomass of buzzards?
Mice transfer a larger percentage of their biomass when eaten by buzzards than when eaten by snakes.
Buzzards in habitat B are at a higher trophic level, so more of the biomass is passed on to them.
The producer biomass is divided equally between trophic levels, so each level receives more in habitat B.
Biomass reaches the buzzards after fewer transfers, so less biomass is lost between trophic levels.
103 exam-style questions on AQA GCSE Biology 7.4 Trophic levels in an ecosystem, covering 7.4.1 Trophic levels, 7.4.2 Pyramids of biomass, and 7.4.3 Transfer of biomass. Each one has a worked solution and a mark scheme showing where the marks go.