In the food chain Grass → Grasshopper → Frog → Snake, identify the trophic level occupied by each organism and name the type of consumer each animal represents.
Generated by claude-sonnet-4-6 · 2026-06-26 00:58 · grounding rag
Model Answer
| Organism | Trophic Level | Type of Consumer |
|---|---|---|
| Grass | 1st (Producer) | — (Autotroph) |
| Grasshopper | 2nd | Primary consumer (Herbivore) |
| Frog | 3rd | Secondary consumer (Small carnivore) |
| Snake | 4th | Tertiary consumer (Larger carnivore) |
The autotrophs (grass) fix solar energy at the first trophic level. Each subsequent animal feeds on the organism below it, moving energy up the chain, with only ~10% transferred at each level.
Source: Chapter 13, Section 13.1.1 – Food Chains and Webs
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Explanation
- Trophic level = each step in a food chain; examiners expect you to number them (1st, 2nd, etc.) AND name the level (producer, primary consumer, etc.).
- The textbook explicitly lists: herbivores = primary consumers (2nd), small carnivores = secondary consumers (3rd), larger carnivores = tertiary consumers (4th). Use these exact terms.
- A table format is clear and earns full marks efficiently for this type of question — it covers all three required organisms (animals) plus the producer without wasting words.
- Do not confuse "trophic level" with "consumer level" — grass is at the 1st trophic level but is not a consumer.