Limitations of ecolgical pyramid is/are:-
The ecological pyramids are an easy and efficient representation of the energy relationships, number of organisms and biomass of an ecosystem. Thus they are of three types- pyramid of energy, pyramid of numbers and pyramid of biomass. Most ecological pyramids, especially pyramid of energy is always upright, that is broad at the base and narrow at the apex, indicating the decrease in energy transfer and decrease in number of organisms (in case of pyramid of numbers) from one trophic level to another. The size of each trophic level is also a representation of the energy assimilated in that particular trophic level. Yet all of them overlook one or more aspects. Some of these limitations are as follows:
1.Some species belong to more than two or more trophic levels. This is particularly true in the case of consumers of higher trophic levels. Man is an example, he gets his food from primary producers as well as from higher trophic levels.Such organisms which feed at more than one trophic level are extremly difficult to depict in ecological pyramids.
2. Saprophytes play a vital role in each trophic level of the pyramid as they feed on dead and decaying parts of plant and animal matter but they are not represented in specific level in the ecological pyramids.