Meaning & use
ecological pyramid
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Meaning
nouncountable
A diagram with stacked layers showing how numbers, mass or energy decrease from the plants at the bottom through each feeding level above.
Grammar: Plural: ecological pyramids; often drawn as a stack of bars.
Patterns
- an ecological pyramid of something
The ecological pyramid shows far fewer hawks than grasshoppers.
Students drew an ecological pyramid for a pond habitat.
An ecological pyramid of energy always narrows toward the top.
Word forms
| plural | ecological pyramids |
|---|
Common combinations
- pyramid of numbers
- A pyramid of numbers counts the organisms at each level.
- pyramid of biomass
- The pyramid of biomass can look inverted in an ocean.
- pyramid of energy
- A pyramid of energy is always upright.
- draw an ecological pyramid
- Draw an ecological pyramid for the grassland food chain.
- base of the pyramid
- Producers form the base of the pyramid.
Synonyms and how they differ
- trophic pyramid
- Trophic pyramid emphasizes feeding levels and is the more technical name.
- energy pyramid
- Energy pyramid is one specific type of ecological pyramid, showing only energy flow.
- food pyramid
- Food pyramid is about a human diet, not an ecosystem, so it is not a true synonym.
Word family
- ecology noun
- The study of living things and their environment.
- ecological adjective
- Relating to ecology.
- ecologist noun
- A scientist who studies ecology.
- ecosystem noun
- A community of organisms and their environment.
Commonly confused: ecological pyramid or food chain?
ecological pyramid vs food chain
A food chain shows a single line of who eats whom, while an ecological pyramid shows quantities at each level.
Practice
An ecological pyramid of energy gets narrower toward the top because:
Choose one answer.
Only a fraction of energy passes up each level. Size of predators has no direct effect on the shape, which is a tempting guess.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “ecological pyramid”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.