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Biomass is lost as it passes through a food chain - OCR Gateway - GCSE Biology - Question 15 - 2023 - Paper 2
Question 15
Biomass is lost as it passes through a food chain. Which processes are responsible for this loss in biomass? A) Egestion, excretion and respiration B) Egestion, t... show full transcript
Worked Solution & Example Answer:Biomass is lost as it passes through a food chain - OCR Gateway - GCSE Biology - Question 15 - 2023 - Paper 2
Step 1
Which processes are responsible for this loss in biomass?
Answer
The correct answer is A) Egestion, excretion and respiration.
Explanation:
- Egestion: This is the process by which undigested food is expelled from the body, leading to a loss of biomass.
- Excretion: This refers to the elimination of metabolic waste products, which also results in a decrease in biomass.
- Respiration: This biological process releases energy from biomass but also results in the loss of carbon and other materials as byproducts, further contributing to biomass loss.
In contrast, transpiration and photosynthesis do not directly lead to biomass loss, as transpiration is mainly the loss of water from plants, and photosynthesis is the process of converting light energy into chemical energy.