Question

1. assume that the grasshopper in the food pyramid above must eat half its body weight in grass each day. if an average - size grasshopper weighs 2 grams, and 1 blade of grass weighs 0.1 grams (one tenth of a gram), how many blades of grass does the grasshopper need to eat each day? 2. assume a snake must eat 5 grasshoppers per day, while an eagle must eat 2 snakes per day. use this information along with your answer from question #1 to calculate how many blades of grass are needed to keep an eagle alive for a day?

Explanation:

Step1: Calculate the amount of grass a grasshopper eats per day

The grasshopper weighs \(2\) grams and eats half its body weight in grass each day. So the amount of grass it eats is \(\frac{2}{2}= 1\) gram.

Step2: Calculate the number of blades of grass a grasshopper eats per day

Since each blade of grass weighs \(0.1\) grams, the number of blades \(n\) is given by \(n=\frac{1}{0.1}\)

$$n = 10$$

Step3: Calculate the number of grasshoppers a snake eats per day and the grass they consume

A snake eats \(5\) grasshoppers per day. Each grasshopper eats \(10\) blades of grass. So the grass consumed by grasshoppers eaten by one snake is \(5\times10 = 50\) blades.

Step4: Calculate the number of snakes an eagle eats per day and the total grass consumed

An eagle eats \(2\) snakes per day. Each snake's grass - consumption (via grasshoppers) is \(50\) blades. So the total number of blades of grass \(N\) is \(N=2\times50\)

$$N = 100$$

Answer:

1. \(10\) blades of grass.
2. \(100\) blades of grass.