CSEC ECOLOGY 4

Ms Seejoor

PYRAMIDS

Consider the following food web:

1 Oak tree - 2 tonnes

100 snails - 20g

1000 aphids – 10g

60 ladybirds – 10g

10 blackbirds – 500g

500 caterpillars – 20g

800 woodbeetles – 2g

20 thrushes – 30g

5 hawks – 500g

Construct a pyramid of numbers and a pyramid of biomass.

PYRAMID OF NUMBERS

The first step is to assign the organisms to trophic levels. Look at the food web and follow the various
food chains. The first member of a food chain belongs to the first trophic level; the second member
belongs to the second trophic level, and so on.

Consider the food chain oak tree → caterpillar → blackbird → hawk

The blackbird is at trophic level 3.

and

Consider the food chain oak tree → aphid → ladybird → blackbird → hawk

The blackbird is at trophic level 4.

Both food chains are found in the same food web. This is a dilemma: does the blackbird belong to the
third trophic level or the fourth? It cannot be assigned to both. We have to choose one. Do we guess?
No. Do we choose our favourite level? No.

Instead, we visit the ecosystem and observe the feeding habits of the blackbird over a period of time.
Does it feed more commonly on caterpillars? Assign it to trophic level 3. Does it feed more commonly
on ladybirds? Then assign it to trophic level 4.

Assume that we made the necessary observations and we assigned the blackbird to the third trophic
level. Identify the other organism that feeds at more than one trophic level.

The hawk feeds at the fourth trophic level and at the fifth trophic level.

Assume that we assigned the hawk to the fourth trophic level.

The second step is to list all the members of each trophic level. Write them in the following table, using
the example shown.

Trophic level Organisms

4
3 ladybird, thrush, blackbird
2
1
Now check your table for accuracy, by referring to the table below:

Trophic level Organisms

4 hawk
3 ladybird, thrush, blackbird
2 aphid, caterpillar, woodbeetle, snail
1 oak tree

Now we need to include the number of each organism and calculate the total number of organisms at
each trophic level. Use the example in the following table to complete it.

Trophic level Organisms (number) Total number of organisms

4 hawk
3 ladybird (60), thrush (20), blackbird (10) 90
2 aphid, caterpillar, woodbeetle, snail
1 oak tree

Now check your table for accuracy, by referring to the table below:

Trophic Organisms (number) Total number of

level organisms
4 Hawk (5) 5
3 ladybird (60), thrush (20), blackbird (10) 90
2 Aphid (1000), caterpillar (500), woodbeetle (800), snail (100) 2400
1 oak tree (1) 1

Now you need to obtain a sheet of graph paper. Insert the information in the table in the form of a
pyramid, in which the width of the bars of the pyramid is proportional to the number of organisms at
the various trophic levels.

You need to decide on a scale for the x-axis, e.g. 1cm = 10 organisms.

You do not need a scale for the y-axis. Why? The height of the bars should be all the same, so there is
no need for a scale.
Your pyramid should have a similar shape to the one above. It is called a pyramid of numbers.

Does it look like a pyramid? All the bars do, except the bar of the first trophic level. It spoils the
pyramid shape. When the producers are large trees, a typical pyramid shape is not obtained, because a
small number of large trees can provide food for a huge number of small organisms.

Parasites often spoil the shape of a pyramid, as well. Consider the example of a bird being infested by
1000 bird lice. A small number of birds can provide food for a large number of small parasites. Consider
the pyramid of numbers below.

It is likely that the 4th trophic level includes some parasites.

PYRAMID OF BIOMASS

Sometimes, pyramids of biomass are constructed instead of pyramids of numbers, in order to obtain a
pyramid shape.

Biomass is dry weight. It is the weight of the organism without its water. How is it calculated? See the
steps below:

1. Weigh the organism.

2. Heat it to 1100C.
3. Cool the organism to room temperature.
4. Weigh the organism.
5. Repeat steps 2 – 4 until the same weight is obtained for three consecutive repetitions. This
weight is the dry weight, or the biomass, of the organism.

Consider the food web again. In a pyramid of numbers, the oak tree is just one organism (it is
represented by a narrow bar) but in a pyramid of biomass, it has a large dry weight and is represented
by a wide bar. The biomass pyramid therefore depicts, more accurately, the role of the oak tree in
providing food to a large number of organisms. The pyramid shape is now typical.

Similarly, parasites are often large in number, but small in biomass. A small bar in the pyramid of
biomass will therefore represent them, and the typical pyramid shape will be obtained.

Consider the same food web, again:

1 Oak tree - 2 tonnes

100 snails - 20g

1000 aphids – 10g

60 ladybirds – 10g

10 blackbirds – 500g

500 caterpillars – 20g

800 woodbeetles – 2g

20 thrushes – 30g

5 hawks – 500g

Note the dry weight of the various creatures. We will construct a pyramid of biomass.

Firstly, assign the organism to trophic levels.

Trophic level Organisms

4 hawk
3 ladybird, thrush, blackbird
2 aphid, caterpillar, woodbeetle, snail
1 oak tree

Secondly, note the numbers of the organisms.

Trophic level Organisms (number)

4 Hawk (5)
3 ladybird (60), thrush (20), blackbird (10)
2 Aphid (1000), caterpillar (500), woodbeetle (800), snail (100)
1 oak tree (1)

Thirdly, note the dry weight of each organism.

Let’s use the caterpillars as an example.

Each caterpillar has 20g dry weight.

There are 500 caterpillars.

The total dry weight of the caterpillars in the ecosystem is 20g X 500 = 10 kg
Using similar calculations, obtain the total dry weight of each species in a trophic level. The sum of
these values is the total dry weight, or biomass, for the trophic level.

Example: trophic level 2

Dry weight of aphids = 1000 X 10g = 10 kg

Dry weight of caterpillars = 500 X 20g = 10 kg

Dry weight of woodbeetles = 800 X 2g = 1.6 kg

Dry weight of snails = 100 X 20g = 2 kg

TOTAL DRY WEIGHT of trohic level = 23.6 kg

In a similar way, calculate the total dry weight or biomass of each trophic level of the ecosystem. Write
them in the table below:

Trophic level Organisms Total biomass

4 hawk
3 ladybird, thrush, blackbird
2 aphid, caterpillar, woodbeetle,
snail
1 oak tree

Check the accuracy of your answers by referring to the table below:

Trophic level Organisms Total biomass

4 hawk 2.5 kg
3 ladybird, thrush, blackbird 6.2 kg
2 aphid, caterpillar, woodbeetle, 23.6 kg
snail
1 oak tree 2 000 kg

Use the weights in the table to construct a pyramid of biomass. . If you find it difficult to find a scale that
works for all the bars, then sketch the approximate shape on a sheet of plain paper and forget about the
scale. DO NOT USE DIFFERENT SCALES FOR DIFFERENT BARS. 
Its shape resembles the one below:

Consider the following food web:

1000 plankton - 1g

1000 penguins – 10 kg

300 million krill – 10g

100 seals – 30kg

100 squid – 100g

1 whale – 1 tonne

10 seagulls – 2kg

Construct a pyramid of numbers and a pyramid of biomass. If you find it difficult to find a scale that
works for all the bars, then sketch the approximate shape on a sheet of plain paper and forget about the
scale. DO NOT USE DIFFERENT SCALES FOR DIFFERENT BARS. 

Both pyramids should have a shape like this

The reason is small aquatic producers are often quickly eaten, but they have an extremely high rate of
reproduction. When the ecosystem is observed, a small number and biomass may be recorded, but this
does not reflect the high rate of reproduction of the creatures.

To overcome this limitation, a pyramid of energy is constructed

PYRAMID OF ENERGY

This represents the amount of energy contained in each trophic level.

How is the energy content of an organism measures?

It is done by converting its energy into a form that can be measured. Heat is easily measure with a
thermometer.

The organism is placed in an insulated container , to which a thermometer is attached.

Oxygen is introduced into the container.

The organism is burnt.

During combustion, the energy of the organism is converted to light, sound and mostly heat energy.

The heat energy is recorded as a rise in temperature. A calculation is done to determine the energy
content of the organism, based on the rise in temperature.

A typical pyramid shape is always obtained.

Home work 

1. Describe how energy travels through an ecosystem.

2. Define “energy loss from a trophic level.”
3. Identify ways in which energy is lost from trophic levels.
4. What is the consequence of loss of energy from trophic levels?