This pyramid shows the process by which organisms get their energy. The grass at the bottom gets its energy from the sun then the grasshoppers eat the grass, prairie dogs eat the grasshoppers, and the hawks eat the prairie dogs.
The grass in the pyramid gets 100% of the energy it needs from the sun, but as it gets passed on the organism eating the other gets less of the energy so it has to eat more. So lets say the grasshoppers eat the grass and get 80% of the energy so all they have to do is eat a few blades and they're good. Then the prairie dogs need food so they eat grass hoppers but only get 50% of the energy they got so they have to eat a good amount of them. Then the hawk is hungry so it wants a snack and picks up a prairie dog but maybe gets 30% of the over all energy from it them. The energy is lost because the organisms keep using some of it when they move.
The grass in the pyramid gets 100% of the energy it needs from the sun, but as it gets passed on the organism eating the other gets less of the energy so it has to eat more. So lets say the grasshoppers eat the grass and get 80% of the energy so all they have to do is eat a few blades and they're good. Then the prairie dogs need food so they eat grass hoppers but only get 50% of the energy they got so they have to eat a good amount of them. Then the hawk is hungry so it wants a snack and picks up a prairie dog but maybe gets 30% of the over all energy from it them. The energy is lost because the organisms keep using some of it when they move.