CAPE Biology Unit 1 · 2003 · Paper 2 · Question 5(c)

The ruby-throated humming bird stores fat before migrating across the Gulf of Mexico. Fats, for example triglycerides, contain twice as much energy, per gram, as carbohydrates, for example sucrose. Fat is, therefore, an efficient energy storage material for animals.

Using a comparison of the way fats and carbohydrates interact with water, suggest why fat is the BETTER energy storage material for the humming bird.