Neco 2021 Biology Question 2

Two desert plants are compared for water‑loss adaptation. Plant\,A has a leaf area of \(0.02\ \text{m}^{2}\) per plant and a stomatal conductance of \(0.15\ \text{mol\ m}^{-2}\text{s}^{-1}\). Plant\,B has a leaf area of \(0.05\ \text{m}^{2}\) and a stomatal conductance of \(0.08\ \text{mol\ m}^{-2}\text{s}^{-1}\). The ambient vapor‑pressure deficit (VPD) is constant at \(2\ \text{kPa}\). Using the simplified transpiration equation \(E = g_{s}\,\text{VPD}\times0.1\) (which gives litres of water lost per second per square metre of leaf), calculate the total water loss per plant over a 24‑hour period for each plant and state which plant exhibits the more effective water‑conserving adaptation.