IGCSE Biology / Ecosystems

Pyramids of number, biomass and energy

Edexcel International GCSE Biology (4BI1), chapter 14: Ecosystems, specification point 4.7. Part of the full course.

Read the revision notes · IGCSE Biology past papers

Pyramids of number, biomass and energy show different quantities at each trophic level in a food chain. Knowing what each measures explains why only a pyramid of energy is always the right shape.

More lessons in Ecosystems

• Habitat, population, community, ecosystem
• Practical: quadrats and transects
• What biodiversity means and how it is measured
• Food chains and food webs
• Decomposers and decay
• Why energy is lost between levels
• The carbon cycle
• The nitrogen cycle