A pesticide which is a chlorinated hydrocarbon is sprayed on a food crop. The food chain is: Food crop – Rat – Snake – Hawk. In this food chain, the highest concentration of the pesticide would accumulate in which one of the following?

Question

YESPYQ · Accepted Answer

Correct answer: Hawk Environment and Ecology 475. This increasing concentration of a toxic substance as it moves up the food chain is known as biomagnification. Pred- ators at the highest trophic levels like hawks suffer the most severe effects, including reproductive issues, weakened immune systems, and neurological damage due to the high pesticide load. When a chlorinated hydrocarbon pesticide like DDT enters the food chain, it accumulates in fatty tissues through bioaccumu- lation. As predators consume contaminated prey, the pesticide concentration increases, peaking in top predators due to biomag- nification. Thus in the above food chain—Food crop → Rat → Snake → Hawk—the hawk experiences the highest pesticide concen- tration. 22

A pesticide which is a chlorinated hydrocarbon is sprayed on a food crop. The food chain is: Food crop – Rat – Snake – Hawk. In this food chain, the highest concentration of the pesticide would accumulate in which one of the following?

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