Question

The following is an example of a food chain from sagebrush to -> steppe ecosystem. Which of the organisms is the tertiary consumer?

Sagebrush->Squirrel->Snake->Hawk

Answer 1

The Hawk in the given food chain (sagebrush -> squirrel -> snake -> hawk) is the tertiary consumer as it eats the snake that eats the squirrel, which consumes the sagebrush.

Step-by-step explanation:

In the given food chain, the tertiary consumer is the organism that feeds on the organism that feeds directly on plants (primary consumers). In the sagebrush -> squirrel -> snake -> hawk chain, each arrow represents a 'feed on' relationship with the organism to the left being the food source for the organism to the right. By this logic, the Hawk is the tertiary consumer as it feeds on the snake, which in turn feeds on the squirrel that feeds directly on sagebrush.

Learn more about Tertiary Consumer