Which Statement Best Describes What Ultimately Happens to the Chemical

question 27

Multiple Choice

Which statement best describes what ultimately happens to the chemical energy that is not converted to new biomass in the process of energy transfer between trophic levels in an ecosystem?

• A) All of it is undigested and winds up in the feces and is not passed on to higher trophic levels.
• B) It is only used by organisms to maintain their life processes through the reactions of cellular respiration.
• C) Heat produced by cellular respiration is used by heterotrophs to thermoregulate.
• D) It is eliminated as feces or is dissipated into space as heat in accordance with the second law of thermodynamics.
• E) It is recycled by decomposers to a form that is once again usable by primary producers.

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Definitions:

Conifers

A group of gymnosperm plants characterized by seed-bearing cones and needle-like or scale-like leaves, including pines and spruces.

Horsetail

A seedless vascular plant having only one genus (Equisetum) in existence today; characterized by rhizomes, scalelike leaves, strobili, and tough, rigid stems.

Sporophyte

The diploid, spore-producing phase of a plant that alternates with the haploid gametophyte in the life cycle.

Angiosperms

Flowering plants that produce seeds enclosed within a fruit, representing the most diverse group of plants on Earth.