Question

From where does the grazing food chain begin?
(a) Consumers
(b) Decaying leaves and dead animals
(c) Chlorophyllous producers
(d) Decomposers

Answer 1

Hint: In the grazing type of a food chain, the energy required by the lowest trophic level organism is obtained by the process of photosynthesis. Photosynthesis can be performed by only those organisms which have chlorophyll present in them.

Complete step by step answer:
The grazing type of food chain depends completely on sunlight as the primary producers are mostly green plants. They produce their own energy through the process of photosynthesis which in turn is completely dependent on sunlight. The food synthesized by these organisms is then utilized by the primary consumer, secondary consumer, and then the tertiary consumer. This type of food chain always adds energy to the food chain and is involved in the fixation of inorganic nutrients.
Every macroscopic organism is involved in a grazing type of food chain. Further, the grazing food chain is of two types i.e. predator food chain and parasitic food chain. In a predator type of chain, one animal consumes another. The one being consumed is called Prey and the one who eats the other is called a predator. In the parasitic type, parasites infect the grazing plants and animals. Examples of a grazing type of food chain can be :
$Phytoplankton \rightarrow Zooplankton \rightarrow Small Fish \rightarrow Large fish \\
Grass \rightarrow Deer \rightarrow Fox$
So, the correct answer is ‘(c) Chlorophyllous producers’.

Note:
In a grazing type of food chain, more than two trophic levels are essential out of which the starting point is always a photosynthetic producer. The chain is also larger as compared to the other type i.e. detritus food chain.