Question

In a terrestrial food chain which of the following organisms comprise the greatest mass of the substance (biomass)?
(a)Decomposers (e.g.,bacteria)
(b)Producers (e.g.,grasses)
(c)Primary consumers (e.g.,mice)
(d)Secondary consumers (e.g.snakes)
(e)Tertiary consumers (e.g.,hawks)

Answer 1

Hint: The organisms that comprise the greatest biomass use sunlight to make their food. These are eukaryotes, multicellular, presence of cell walls made of cellulose, and the presence of chloroplast for photosynthesis.

Complete answer:
Producers make their food. Green plants have chlorophyll which traps energy from the sun to make food. The bottom level of the food chain is formed by the producers. Producers are also known as autotrophs. Examples of producers are algae, plants such as grasses, and trees.

Additional Information
-Animals are consumers because they cannot create their own food, they have to eat plants or other animals to get the energy that they need.
-There are three types of consumers in the food chain: herbivores, carnivores, and omnivores.
-Microorganisms can break down large molecules into smaller parts. Decomposers return the nutrient that is in a living thing to the soil.
-A food chain is simplified by looking at the energy that passes from producers to the consumer.
-Types of the food chain: aquatic and terrestrial.
-The information in the food chain helps in understanding the feeding relationship as well as the interaction between organism and ecosystem.
-Food chain also helps to understand the movement of toxic substances and the problems associated with biological magnification in the ecosystem.
-Three types of ecological pyramids are:
Pyramid of numbers
Pyramid of biomass
Pyramid of energy

So, the correct answer is, ‘producers (e.g., grasses).’

Note:
-Trophic levels are the feeding position in a food chain such as primary producers, herbivores, primary carnivores, etc.
-The graphical representation of biomass present per unit area of different trophic levels, with producers at the base and top carnivores at the top.