The Functioning of Ecosystems
نویسنده
چکیده
The biological systems known as ecosystems are always composed of a great number of "pa r tne r s " (10, 26, 27). Solar energy, which is the origin of life, is captured by plants possessing chlorophyll (the green plants) which grow on land and in the sea. All species of vegetarian animals, from minuscule crustaceans to elephants, feed on these plants. Such animals may be devoured by carnivores, which may in turn become victims of other predators . This pyramid forms a network of food chains, where the eater becomes the eaten, before reaching the stage of superpredators . Although the latter have little to fear from other animals, at death their bodies become the prey of organisms which are responsible for decomposition and elimination of
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