Question

An orange roughy fish eats squid and small fish. It also is eaten by predators like dolphins and sharks. Where would the orange roughy most likely appear on a food web?
A. It is a primary producer because it provides food for the dolphins and sharks.
B. It is a tertiary consumer because most of the things it eats are secondary producers.
C. It is a secondary consumer because it eats two types of things.
D. It is a primary consumer because it has both predators and prey.

Answer 1

Answer:

The correct answer would be B. It is a tertiary consumer because most of the things it eats are secondary producers.

In a food chain or web, the tertiary consumers are those which can consume primary as well as secondary consumers.  

They are either carnivores, that is, meat eater or omnivores, that is, those who consume both plants as well as animals.

Similarly, orange roughy fish consume organisms like squid which is itself a secondary or tertiary consumer in a food chain. It can also consume small fishes which are primary consumers in a food chain.

Thus, orange roughy fishes would be a tertiary consumer in a food web.