ECOLOGICAL PYRAMIDS and the Transfer of Energy in Ecosystems

Which animals are at each level? What type of ecological niche do they each belong to?

Ecological Pyramids:
graphs which illustrate the trophic levels in a community.

Most ecological pyramids are large at the base and narrow at the top.
This is because every time that an organism is eaten by the next trophic level, some of the energy is lost as heat. Less Energy

More Energy

3 TYPES OF PYRAMIDS:
1. Pyramid of Biomass 2. Pyramid of Energy 3. Pyramid of Numbers

Pyramid of Biomass:
Illustrates the amount of biomass in each trophic level
Biomass weight is determined after dehydration

Shows the amount of matter lost between trophic levels. Measured in Kg, grams or pounds

Pyramid of Biomass

Pyramid of Biomass

Pyramid of Biomass
One problem: They can make a trophic level look like it has more energy than it really does. For example: A bird has a beak, feathers and a skeleton that would count as biomass even though it does not contribute to the overall flow of energy into the next trophic level.

Pyramid of Energy:
Shows the energy available at each trophic level.
The size of the blocks represents the proportion of productivity Measured in Joules or Calories

Pyramid of Energy:
Most of the energy available to the community is in the 1st trophic level. Only 10-20% of the energy is available to the next trophic level ( 90% lost)

Pyramid of Numbers:
Illustration of the number of organisms at each level

What kind of Pyramid is this?

Energy, the trophic levels are measured in Kilocalories

Human Population Growth

How can more people be supported on Earth when there is a limited supply of resources? It depends on what they are eating

Human Population Growth

It requires 10 times as many crops to feed animals being bred for meat consumption as it would to feed the same amount of people on a vegetarian diet!! The US could feed 800 million people with the grain that livestock eat. US population: 303 million

So Remember!
Ecological (Trophic) Pyramids show:
Energy transfer and more importantly energy loss in an ecosystem.

Why there are more herbivores than carnivores in an ecosystem.

Why there are more plants than everything else combined (they support all other populations).

Symbiosis
A close and permanent association between organisms of different species Commensalism a relationship in which one organism benefits and the other is not affected Example: Barnacles on a

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Symbiosis Types
Mutualism a relationship in which both organisms benefit from each other Example: Birds eating pest off a rhinos back Parasitism A relationship in which one organism benefits and the other is harmed Example: Ticks on a dog

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Symbiosis Types
Competition - a relationship where both organisms compete for the same energy source Example: a rabbit and a deer competing for grass, plants competing for light Predation - a relationship where one organism preys upon another Example: a wolf hunting a

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The End
or is it just the beginning