1. Trophic Levels Definition - each step in a food chain or food web
Producers make up 1st trophic level
Consumers make up the other trophic levels and rely on the level below for energy

2. Ecological Pyramid
Definition – a diagram that shows the relative amounts of energy or matter contained within each trophic level
There are 3 types of types of pyramids
Energy Pyramid
Biomass Pyramid
Pyramid of Numbers

3. Energy Pyramid
Shows the amount of energy that flows through the trophic levels
There is no limit to the number of trophic levels in a food web/chain
BUT, as you travel from 1 level to the next, only 10% of the energy is transferred
Most organisms use the energy they have to support their own life processes (respiration, movement, reproduction) and rest is lost as heat

4. Energy Pyramid Example

5. Biomass Pyramid
Biomass – the total amount of living tissue within a trophic level
A biomass pyramid shows the amount of potential food available for each trophic level in an ecosystem

6. Pyramid of Numbers
Shows the relative number of individual organisms at each trophic level
May appear the same as the biomass pyramid but not always the case
Ex) In forests there are fewer producers than consumers
A Tree would have a large amount of energy/biomass, but the many insects that live in the tree would have greater numbers, but less biomass