Question

a herbivore ingests 6 kcal of energy. it gains 1 kcal in biomass, uses 2 kcal in respiration, and egests 2 kcal as waste. how much energy is lost as heat?

Explanation:

Step1: Calculate total non - heat energy

The energy used for biomass is 1 kcal, for respiration is 2 kcal and egested as waste is 2 kcal. So the total non - heat energy is $1 + 2+2=5$ kcal.

Step2: Calculate heat energy

The herbivore ingests 6 kcal of energy. Using the conservation of energy principle, the energy lost as heat is the ingested energy minus the non - heat energy. So, the heat energy is $6-(1 + 2+2)=1$ kcal.

Answer:

1 kcal