In a grassland of Kansas, 1,000 grams of grass are produced per square meter per year by all the different grass species. A theoretical upper limit to the biomass of secondary consumers that can be supported in this ecosystem is:

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In an ecosystem, energy transfer between trophic levels is inefficient, with only about 10% of energy being passed on to the next level. Therefore, if 1,000 grams of grass (primary producers) are produced, the primary consumers (herbivores) could support about 100 grams, and the secondary consumers (carnivores) could support about 10 grams.

In a Grassland of Kansas, 1,000 Grams of Grass Are