An elephant weighs 5000kg. It eats 150kg of food each day. What percentage of its own weight does an elephant eat each day?
The Correct Answer and Explanation is:
To calculate what percentage of an elephant’s weight it eats each day, we use the following formula:
[
\text{Percentage} = \left( \frac{\text{Amount of food eaten per day}}{\text{Weight of the elephant}} \right) \times 100
]
Step 1: Plugging in the values
- The elephant’s weight is 5000 kg.
- The elephant eats 150 kg of food each day.
[
\text{Percentage} = \left( \frac{150}{5000} \right) \times 100
]
Step 2: Performing the calculation
[
\frac{150}{5000} = 0.03
]
[
0.03 \times 100 = 3
]
So, the elephant eats 3% of its own body weight each day.
Explanation:
This calculation tells us that each day, the elephant consumes 3% of its own weight in food. The percentage is a way to express how much of something, in this case, food, relates to a whole, in this case, the elephant’s weight. This is important in understanding an animal’s daily intake relative to its size.
For example, large animals like elephants need to consume large amounts of food to sustain their size, energy needs, and metabolism. In this case, the elephant, weighing 5000 kg, consumes 150 kg of food each day. This proportion is significant when studying the dietary requirements of large animals and the relationship between their body mass and food consumption.
For comparison, a human weighs around 70 kg and typically eats about 2–3 kg of food per day. If we calculate that as a percentage of body weight, it would be roughly 4–5%. While elephants eat a larger quantity of food, their larger body size means that the percentage of body weight they consume is smaller compared to humans.
This percentage calculation is often used in animal care, research, and conservation efforts to assess the dietary needs of various species, ensuring they receive the proper nutrition to remain healthy and function effectively.