UPSC CSE Prelims
Question 53
With reference to food chains in ecosystems, consider the following statements:
- A food chain illustrates the order in which a chain of organisms feed upon each other.
- Food chains are found within the populations of a species.
- A food chain illustrates the numbers of each organism which are eaten by others.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
View correct answer and explanation
Correct answer: A
Correct Option: A
Explanation: A food chain depicts who eats whom and the directional transfer of energy between trophic levels; population sizes require a separate ecological pyramid.
Statement/Pair-wise Analysis:
Statement/Item 1: Correct - A food chain arranges organisms in a feeding/energy-transfer sequence.
Statement/Item 2: Incorrect - A food chain links trophic levels across different species rather than being confined within a single species population.
Statement/Item 3: Incorrect - Numbers of organisms at levels are represented by a pyramid of numbers, not by the food chain itself.
Option-wise Analysis:
A: Correct - selects all and only the accurate statements/pairs.
B: Incorrect - includes false item 2.
C: Incorrect - includes false items 2, 3.
D: Incorrect - excludes true item 1.