Trophic Levels and Biomagnification Pass it on Trophic Levels and Biomagnification

Trophic Levels 10% of the matter consumed by an organism is passed on 90% is lost as heat energy used to support body function

The same ratio occurs in toxin found in food sources Predators consume non-biodegradable toxins in their prey incorporating it into their own body.

But… Since the body does not know how to recognize the toxin, the amount of toxin in the body is magnified by 10%. This is biomagnification Example Producer (0.01%) Primary Consumer (0.1%) Secondary Consumer (1%) Tertiary Consumer (10%)

So what about bioaccumulation? Some toxins are not degraded fast enough by the body and build up in the system where they are stored in fats. The longer it takes for the toxins to breakdown the greater the risk of poisoning even when there is not much of the toxin in the environment.