Food Pyramid
Understanding Food Pyramid
Food pyramid is a general description that is related between biotic components in an ecosystem. Unlike the food chain, this food pyramid illustrates an interaction between biotic components more than just an eating and eating event in a food chain.
In an ecosystem, plants as producers have a larger population compared to other trophic levels. The number of producers is greater than consumers I, consumers II, consumers III and so on up to the top consumers. Based on these differences in population levels, a pyramid-shaped diagram can be drawn.
This pyramid illustrates the relationship between organisms at each trophic level. The relationship formed between an organism in a food pyramid is a cone, like a pyramid.
In a food and eating event or food chain that has been discussed earlier, it describes an interaction of predation between organisms in a straight line (linear). While in the food pyramid it shows a number of organisms in the trophic level of an ecosystem.
Types of food pyramid
The Following Are The Types Of Food Pyramid.
1. Population Pyramid
In this type of pyramid, one illustrates that organisms that occupy lower trophic levels have larger populations than organisms with higher trophic levels. The base of this pyramid is occupied by producers who have a larger population.
Meanwhile, the edges are inhabited by several top consumer individuals. And between the base and the end is occupied by several levels of consumers. The number of population of consumer I is greater than that of consumer II, and consumer II is greater than that of consumer III.
The population pyramid is referred to as a counterweight to the population of each organism. It is only natural for an organism to fall prey to a larger number than a predatory organism. Thus the source of food will never run out. if on the contrary the number of predators is greater, then what will happen is the extinction of an organism.
2. Biomass Pyramid
The biomass pyramid, as the name suggests, represents a mass mix of all organisms in a particular environment or habitat. Then the weight of each organism is measured in grams.
Measurement of biomass at each trophic level is based on the average weight of the organism by estimating the amount. This pyramid is more accurate in showing a quantitative relationship of biomass in an ecosystem.
There are two types of biomass pyramids, namely:
Upright Pyramid
i.e. a pyramid whose combined mass from all producers is greater than the combined mass of each level of consumers. The upright pyramid usually describes a terrestrial ecosystem.
Reverse Pyramid
that is, a type of pyramid describing the combined mass of its producers which is smaller than the combined mass of its consumers. Examples of these pyramids are aquatic ecosystems.
3. Energy Pyramid
In this energy pyramid there is a decrease in energy at each trophic level. The higher the trophic level, the smaller the amount of energy. which means, producers as the first trophic level who have greater energy compared to consumers at higher trophic levels. The decreasing amount of energy in each trophic is due to several reasons. Such as :
Only certain portions of food can be eaten by later trophic levels.
Not all food that is eaten can be digested but excreted into feces.
Some of the food that is eaten is digested into parts of the body of the organism,
while the rest is used as an energy source.
Why is the number of living creatures decreasing at a higher rate in a food pyramid?
The largest number of living things is found in producers who occupy the base of the pyramid.
Living creatures that occupy lower trophic levels are more numerous than living creatures that occupy higher trophic levels. This is illustrated by very large producers and the number of organisms decreases rapidly until only a few peak carnivorous individuals live.