{"id":90949,"date":"2025-06-01T10:41:48","date_gmt":"2025-06-01T10:41:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/exam.pscnotes.com\/mcq\/?p=90949"},"modified":"2025-06-01T10:41:48","modified_gmt":"2025-06-01T10:41:48","slug":"in-an-ecosystem-why-is-the-number-of-trophic-levels-of-a-food-chain-us","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/exam.pscnotes.com\/mcq\/in-an-ecosystem-why-is-the-number-of-trophic-levels-of-a-food-chain-us\/","title":{"rendered":"In an ecosystem why is the number of trophic levels of a food chain us"},"content":{"rendered":"

In an ecosystem why is the number of trophic levels of a food chain usually limited ?<\/p>\n

[amp_mcq option1=”Lower trophic level has lesser energy than the higher trophic level” option2=”Because of the loss of energy at each trophic level” option3=”Higher trophic level individual can control the lower ones more efficiently” option4=”Limited trophic level makes a food chain less vulnerable to parasites” correct=”option2″]<\/p>\n

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\nThe correct option is B. The number of trophic levels in a food chain is usually limited because of the significant loss of energy at each trophic level.
\n<\/section>\n
\n– According to the 10% rule of energy transfer in ecosystems, only about 10% of the energy available at one trophic level is transferred to the next higher trophic level. The rest is lost as heat, used for metabolic processes, or not consumed.
\n– This drastic reduction in available energy at each successive level limits the biomass and population size that can be supported.
\n– After a few trophic levels, there is insufficient energy remaining to support a viable population of organisms at a higher level, thus limiting the food chain length.
\n<\/section>\n
\nLower trophic levels (producers) contain the most energy (biomass). Energy flows unidirectionally up the food chain, becoming less available at each step. While other factors like biomass and population dynamics play a role, the fundamental limit is imposed by energy transfer efficiency.
\n<\/section>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

In an ecosystem why is the number of trophic levels of a food chain usually limited ? [amp_mcq option1=”Lower trophic level has lesser energy than the higher trophic level” option2=”Because of the loss of energy at each trophic level” option3=”Higher trophic level individual can control the lower ones more efficiently” option4=”Limited trophic level makes a … <\/p>\n

Detailed SolutionIn an ecosystem why is the number of trophic levels of a food chain us<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1085],"tags":[1103,1367,1136],"class_list":["post-90949","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-upsc-capf","tag-1103","tag-ecology","tag-environment-and-ecology","no-featured-image-padding"],"yoast_head":"\nIn an ecosystem why is the number of trophic levels of a food chain us<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"The correct option is B. The number of trophic levels in a food chain is usually limited because of the significant loss of energy at each trophic level. - According to the 10% rule of energy transfer in ecosystems, only about 10% of the energy available at one trophic level is transferred to the next higher trophic level. The rest is lost as heat, used for metabolic processes, or not consumed. - This drastic reduction in available energy at each successive level limits the biomass and population size that can be supported. - After a few trophic levels, there is insufficient energy remaining to support a viable population of organisms at a higher level, thus limiting the food chain length.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/exam.pscnotes.com\/mcq\/in-an-ecosystem-why-is-the-number-of-trophic-levels-of-a-food-chain-us\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"In an ecosystem why is the number of trophic levels of a food chain us\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"The correct option is B. The number of trophic levels in a food chain is usually limited because of the significant loss of energy at each trophic level. - According to the 10% rule of energy transfer in ecosystems, only about 10% of the energy available at one trophic level is transferred to the next higher trophic level. The rest is lost as heat, used for metabolic processes, or not consumed. - This drastic reduction in available energy at each successive level limits the biomass and population size that can be supported. - After a few trophic levels, there is insufficient energy remaining to support a viable population of organisms at a higher level, thus limiting the food chain length.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/exam.pscnotes.com\/mcq\/in-an-ecosystem-why-is-the-number-of-trophic-levels-of-a-food-chain-us\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"MCQ and Quiz for Exams\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2025-06-01T10:41:48+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"rawan239\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"rawan239\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"1 minute\" \/>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"In an ecosystem why is the number of trophic levels of a food chain us","description":"The correct option is B. 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The number of trophic levels in a food chain is usually limited because of the significant loss of energy at each trophic level. - According to the 10% rule of energy transfer in ecosystems, only about 10% of the energy available at one trophic level is transferred to the next higher trophic level. 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The number of trophic levels in a food chain is usually limited because of the significant loss of energy at each trophic level. - According to the 10% rule of energy transfer in ecosystems, only about 10% of the energy available at one trophic level is transferred to the next higher trophic level. 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