(a) Given below is a pyramid of biomass in an ecosystem where each bar represents the standing crop available in the trophic level. With the help of an example explain the conditions where this kind of pyramid is possible in nature?
(b) Will the pyramid of energy be also of the same shape in this situation? Give reason for your response.
Answer:
- Inverted pyramids of biomass are seen in aquatic conditions where a small standing crop of phytoplankton supports a large standing crop of zooplankton/fish/In terrestrial ecosystem where a large number of insects are feeding on the leaves of a tree.
- No, the Pyramid of energy is always upright, and can never be inverted because when energy flows from one trophic level to the next trophic level some amount of energy is always lost as heat at each step.
