Question

There are fewer lions in Africa’s Serengeti than there are zebras. This is principally because ________. A. zebras tend to drive off lions; B. lions compete directly with cheetahs, while zebras do not have any competitors; C. zebras have mutualists that increase their population, while lions do not; D. there is less energy available in zebras to support the lion population than there is in grass to support the zebras; E. zebras are a keystone species, while lions are not.

Name: Problem 11, Chapter 15: Biology: Science for Life with Physiology
Uploaded: 2022-03-07T02:07:08-08:00
Duration: 1 min 10 s
Channel: Jonathan Temple

   There are fewer lions in Africa’s Serengeti than there are
zebras. This is principally because ________.
A. zebras tend to drive off lions; B. lions compete directly with cheetahs, while zebras do not have any competitors; C. zebras have mutualists that increase their population, while lions do not; D. there is less energy available in zebras to support the lion population than there is in grass to support the zebras; E. zebras are a keystone species, while lions are not.

Biology: Science for Life with Physiology

Colleen Belk,… 5th Edition

Chapter 15, Problem 11

Instant Answer

Solved by Expert Jonathan Temple

03/07/2022

Step 1

An ecological pyramid is a graphical representation that shows the biomass or biomass productivity at each trophic level in a given ecosystem. The base of the pyramid represents the producers (like grass), and each subsequent level represents the consumers (like Show more…

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There are fewer lions in Africa’s Serengeti than there are zebras. This is principally because ________. A. zebras tend to drive off lions; B. lions compete directly with cheetahs, while zebras do not have any competitors; C. zebras have mutualists that increase their population, while lions do not; D. there is less energy available in zebras to support the lion population than there is in grass to support the zebras; E. zebras are a keystone species, while lions are not.

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Key Concepts

Energy Transfer in Ecosystems

This concept explains that as energy is transferred from one trophic level to the next, a significant amount is lost (usually as heat due to metabolic processes), resulting in less available energy at higher levels. This explains why there are typically fewer top predators, like lions, relative to lower level consumers, such as zebras.

Trophic Levels

Trophic levels describe the steps in a food chain or food web, starting from primary producers and moving up to herbivores and then carnivores. The diminishing energy available at each level limits the number and biomass of organisms that can be supported at higher levels, influencing population sizes in an ecosystem.

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