Energy transfer, biodiversity and human impact

Table 1 shows the estimated annual dry biomass of organisms at different trophic levels in a coastal sand dune ecosystem.

Organism	Dry biomass ( $yr−1\text{kg}\ \text{ha}^{-1}\ \text{yr}^{-1}$ )
Marram grass	1800
Dune snails	210
Sand lizards	25
Kestrels	1.4

Explain why the transfer of biomass from sand lizards to kestrels is less efficient than the transfer of biomass from marram grass to dune snails.

[2]

Table 1 shows the estimated annual dry biomass of organisms at different trophic levels in a coastal sand dune ecosystem.

Organism	Dry biomass ( $yr−1\text{kg}\ \text{ha}^{-1}\ \text{yr}^{-1}$ )
Marram grass	1800
Dune snails	210
Sand lizards	25
Kestrels	1.4

Explain why the transfer of biomass from sand lizards to kestrels is less efficient than the transfer of biomass from marram grass to dune snails.

[2]

Energy transfer, biodiversity and human impact Questions