Energy transfer.

[Zenn]

Can anyone here put these organisms in order from the most efficient to the least efficient in converting ingested food energy to secondary production during their growing stages: Pygmy shrew, elephant, cabbage white, butterfly, snake. Also can you explain the reasoning behind your sequence?

[canalon]

Can anyone here put these organisms in order from the most efficient to the least efficient in converting ingested food energy to secondary production during their growing stages: Pygmy shrew, elephant, cabbage white, butterfly, snake. Also can you explain the reasoning behind your sequence?

I can do both But I won't sinceYOU have to do YOUR homework
But If you come with a list and a tentative explanation, I guess I, and everybody else in the forum, will gladly suggest any needed modification.

Cheers

Patrick

[Zenn]

Very well done.
It is my homework. But seriously i have been through all my books, looked all over the web and done everything i can to find this out and this is my last option. If i could just look it up do you think i would go to the trouble of posting a message on the internet?
Please help,
Jonny.

[canalon]

Very well done.
It is my homework. But seriously i have been through all my books, looked all over the web and done everything i can to find this out and this is my last option. If i could just look it up do you think i would go to the trouble of posting a message on the internet?
Please help,
Jonny.

Well then you should learn how to use a search engine. I typed "energy transfer ecology" in Google and I found that. If you refine a little the query- just like in think a little bit which keywords may be helpfull- you will probably find plenty of thinks. But the 7th slide should be quite a cue.
For the rest, think about size, surface to volume ratio, and homeothermy (huh? see the dictionnary)...

Good luck for the rest

Patrick

[Zenn]

Ok thanks,
I didn't really understand that but i will carry on looking for this simple answer that is ruening my weekend!
Jonny.

[Fried Zygote Sandwich]

Ah, you're trying to directly solve the problem is the problem. You probably won't find a table listing them all in order. You have to come to your own conclusions.

Like Canalon said you should probably by this point understand a few key concepts, such as volume to surface area, ecto and endotherms, (hint cold vs. warm blooded), size and other concepts. These all relate to how efficient an organism is. Don't try and google the answer, you need to understand where to start.

Is an organism more efficient if it produces and maintains it's own body heat, or regulates it through other means?

Will a bigger animal be more efficient than a smaller one?

How does volume correspond to surface area?


Probably too late by now. Hope you figured it out.