Question

What will be the amount of energy available to the organisms of the second and third trophic level of a food chain, if the energy available at the first trophic level is $10,000$J?

Answer 1

• According to Raymond Lindeman law or 10 per cent rule "during the transfer of organic food energy from one trophic level to the next higher level, only about ten percent of the transferred energy is stored as flesh".
• The remaining 90% is lost during transfer, broken down in respiration, or lost to incomplete digestion by higher trophic level.
• So, if the first trophic level has 10,000 J of energy then, the second trophic level has 1000J and third trophic level have 100J of energy.