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Biology
Building an Energy Pyramid
Standard Addressed: S.1.6 I can use mathematics and computational thinking to support claims
for the cycling of matter and flow of energy through trophic levels in an ecosystem.
Objectives: Students will construct an energy pyramid to show the flow of energy through a food web;
Students will calculate how much energy is transferred from one trophic level to the next trophic level.
Question: How do energy pyramids model energy transfer and population size within a food web? How
much energy is transferred from one trophic level to the next trophic level?
Background: An energy pyramid illustrates how energy flows through an ecosystem. By showing the
trophic (feeding) levels of the ecosystem, it is easy to visualize how energy is transferred from autotrophs
(these are known as producers) to heterotrophs (these are known as consumers). Be aware of the rule of
10’s: only about 10% of energy at any given trophic level is transferred to the next. It is also important to note
that there is more energy available at the bottom end of the pyramid.
Procedure:
Part 1
1. Using the left side of Fig. 1 (the pyramid), label each level of the pyramid with the
appropriate term: producer, primary consumer, secondary consumer, tertiary
consumer.
2. Using the right side of the pyramid, label each level of the energy pyramid with the
appropriate term: trophic level 1, trophic level 2, trophic level 3, trophic level 4.
3. Using the food web poster you have created, find ONE food chain that has four
organisms. Write the names of those organisms into the energy pyramid (inside the
pyramid itself).
Question 1: As mentioned in the background reading, a rule of 10’s exists within this pyramid
and is represented by using the pyramid shape (it starts of wide and narrows moving upward).
What does this imply about the amount of energy available in the third trophic level
compared to the amount of energy in the first trophic level?
-There is more energy starting at the bottom and as it gets more narrow it gets less energy.
Question 2: Considering the rule of 10’s, why does the pyramid narrow (what happens to the
energy)?
fox
owl
mouse
Autotroph/Producers
Part 2
1. Observe the experimental data in Table 1.
2. Write the names of the organisms you put into your energy pyramid in Part 1 into the
appropriate place on the table (using the examples column).
3. Calculate the percent of energy that is transferred from the first trophic level to the
second trophic level. To do this, divide the amount of energy from trophic level 1 by
trophic level 2, then multiply the answer by 100 to convert it into a percent. This is the
percent of energy transferred. Record this in the appropriate place in the data table.
4. Follow step 3 to complete the percent of energy transferred from trophic level 2 to
trophic level 3, and from trophic level 3 to trophic level 4.
Table 1
200 N/A
19.6
0.19
Question 1: In Table 1 above, does the calculated amount of energy transferred fit the Rule of
10%?
Explain how it does or does not: It does because the amount is around 10%
Question 2: As we can see in Table 1, the amount of energy decreases moving from one trophic
level to the next. Why do you think this energy is lost?
~Because each percent is being lost and it keeps decreasing.
Trophic level 4
c. Explain your reason:
The bottom of the pyramid is more wide which means the population is very wide, while at
the top of the pyramid is very narrow which would mean the population has decreased.