Why are food chains relatively short?
A) Top-level feeders tend to be more numerous than lower-trophic-level species.
B) Top-level feeders tend to be small but are capable of conserving more energy.
C) Longer chains are less stable and energy transfer between levels is inefficient.
D) There are only so many organisms that are adapted to feed on other types of organisms.
E) Food chain length is ultimately determined by the photosynthetic efficiency of producers.

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

Longer food chains are less stable and less efficient because energy transfer between trophic levels is inefficient due to losses through respiration and metabolic processes. Therefore, food chains tend to be relatively short.

Answer: D
 The length of a food chain is limited by the availability of species that are adapted to feed on other types of organisms. As the number of potential prey species decreases at each successive trophic level, the number of top-level predators also decreases, resulting in shorter food chains.

Why Are Food Chains Relatively Short