Question

Which of the following statements differentiates between terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems?

• A. Organisms in terrestrial ecosystems are dependent on oxygen, while those in aquatic ecosystems are not.
• B. Nutrients are a limiting factor for populations in aquatic ecosystems but not for terrestrial populations.
• C. Producers make up the greatest amount of biomass in terrestrial ecosystems, while in aquatic ecosystems they do not.
• D. Sunlight is a limiting factor for populations in terrestrial ecosystems but not for populations in aquatic ecosystems.
• E. Energy in aquatic ecosystem is transferred from lower to higher trophic levels, but it moves in the opposite direction in aquatic ecosystems.

Answer 1

The correct option is C Producers make up the greatest amount of biomass in terrestrial ecosystems, while in aquatic ecosystems they do not.

In a terrestrial ecosystem, producers like grasses, trees and shrubs have a much higher biomass than the herbivores such as deer, zebras and insects. The level with the least biomass are the highest predators in the food chain because plants grow and reproduce slowly. Aquatic biomass is a reversal of terrestrial biomass, can increase at higher trophic levels. In the ocean, biomass pyramid is an inverted. In particular, the biomass of consumers (copepods, krill, shrimp, forage fish) is larger than the biomass of primary producers. This happens because the ocean's primary producers are tiny phytoplankton that grows and reproduce rapidly, so a small mass can have a fast rate of primary production. Thus, the correct answer is option C.