Question

questions 2 through 4 refer to the following. the next questions are based on the following table of organisms in an ecological community. the x in a cell indicates that the organism is eaten by the consumer in the first column. 3 based on the data in the table, if the number of snakes were to suddenly decrease, which of the following changes would most likely occur in the food web of this ecosystem? (a) increase in number of shrews decrease in number of hawks (b) increase in number of hawks decrease in number of shrews (c) increase in number of grasshoppers decrease in number of plants (d) increase in number of spiders decrease in number of plants

Explanation:

From the table, snakes eat shrews and spiders eat grass - hoppers. Snakes also compete with hawks for shrews as a food source. If the number of snakes decreases, there will be less predation on shrews, so the number of shrews will increase. Also, with fewer snakes, hawks will have less competition for shrews as a food source, but the overall decrease in snakes may lead to a decrease in the number of hawks due to a potential overall reduction in the food - web's energy flow related to the loss of snakes.

Answer:

A. increase in number of shrews, decrease in number of hawks