How do herbivores get their food
Herbivores or herbivores (in English: Herbivores) feed on autotrophic organisms or products, that is, they depend for their food specifically on organisms that can make their own food, including plants and algae, so herbivores occupy the second level in the food chain that Describes the transfer of energy between living organisms, while products occupy the first level, and carnivores and omnivores occupy the third level,[1] and well-known examples of herbivores; Cows, horses, giraffes, and iguanas.[2]
types of herbivores
Some herbivores feed on any plant material they get, such as elephants that eat tree bark, twigs, roots, and fruits, in addition to herbs, while some herbivores specialize in eating only specific parts of the plant, such as bees that feed on flower nectar and pollen, and aphids that feed on plant sap only, [1] and examples of some types of herbivores specialized in eating specific parts of plants: [3] fruit-eaters: (in English: Frugivore); They are herbivores that feed mainly on fruits, examples of which are fruit bats and the giant fruit bat, also known as the flying fox. Leaf eaters: (in English: Folivore); They are herbivores that feed mainly on tree leaves, and examples include the panda, the koala, and the giraffe. Wood eaters: in English: Xylophages); Examples include; Termites and Asian longhorn beetles. Detritivores: (in English: Detritivore); They are herbivores that consume dead organic matter including the remains of plants, animals, fungi, and decomposing algae, an example of which is the earthworm.[1]
Characteristics of herbivores
Herbivores often have physical characteristics that help them eat tough and difficult-to-digest plant materials as a result of the presence of a cell wall surrounding their cells, and the most important of these characteristics are the following: [1] Many herbivorous mammals have broad molars that help them grind leaves and herbs. Ruminants - one of the types of herbivores -such as sheep and deer- have a stomach divided into 4 chambers that enable them to digest highly efficient plant materials. Where the digestion process begins in the first chamber, which contains bacteria that break down and soften plant particles, then the food is returned to the mouth again and chewed again, then moved to the second chamber, where there are chemicals that help digest difficult plant materials, and from there to the third chamber, then to Fourth.
How do carnivores get their food
Carnivores depend on the meat of the animals they hunt for their food, and the prey of carnivores is often herbivores, but they eat from time to time other meat-eaters, or omnivorous animals, [4] and carnivores are classified according to the degree of their consumption of meat into 3 Types, which are as follows: [5] Super or higher carnivores: (in English: Hypercarnivores); They are carnivores whose diet consists of at least 70% of meat, and they are also known as compulsory carnivores, and examples include the polar bear, the lion, the tiger, and the snake. Intermediate carnivores: (in English: Mesocarnivores); They are carnivores, at least 50-70% of their diet consists of meat, and the rest of their food consists of vegetables, fruits, fungi, and nuts. These animals are small to medium in size, and examples of them are the fox and the raccoon. Lower carnivores: (in English: Hypocarnivores); They are carnivores, but meat constitutes less than 30% of their diet, while most of their food consists of grains, plants, fruits, roots, and nuts.
Characteristics of carnivores
Here are the most important characteristics that distinguish carnivores: Most carnivores have huge cutting teeth that enable them to cut the meat and tendons of prey with great efficiency. [6] They also have strong mouths and jaws that enable them to break the bones and cartilage of the prey. Size.[6] Most carnivores have acute hearing and vision.[6] Most carnivores are characterized by the ability to run gracefully and at high speed.[6] Birds of prey have; Like eagles and owls, strong hooked beaks, strong claws, and sharp claws.[5] Carnivores have developed hunting behaviors that enable them to catch and paralyze their prey, as wolves, for example, use their sharp teeth, owls use claws, snakes use poison, and spiders wrap their prey with threads. to paralyze its movement.[7] Carnivores have short digestive systems, including the large intestine, which is short and simple in structure.[8]
How do omnivorous animals obtain their food
Omnivores depend on plants as a main source of energy, but they also consume meat regularly, and in this way, they differ from herbivores that are forced to eat meat in exceptional circumstances, [2] and differ them in that their digestive system is not qualified to digest some materials Found in grains or other plants that do not produce fruits.[9] The group of omnivores includes many animals that were believed to be herbivores, such as: squirrels that feed mainly on nuts, fruits, and seeds, but they sometimes eat insects and small birds and also include Animals that were believed to be carnivores, such as red foxes that feed mainly on rabbits, but they also eat fruits. The box turtle, some fish, such as opal fish, and some insects, such as ants
Characteristics of omnivores
Here are the most important distinguishing characteristics of omnivorous animals: They have some omnivores; Like a raccoon, it has sharp front teeth that enable them to cut meat, large molars that enable them to chew plants, and it also has long fingers that enable them to grab their prey and reach fruits and plants at the same time. [10] The digestive system of omnivores is less complex than the digestive system of herbivores, but it is also not very simple as the digestive system of carnivores, that is, it can be considered an intermediate state between the two species, as it can process some plant materials, and deal with more solid plant materials; This is done by leaving them as they are and disposing of them as waste rather than trying to digest them.[11] Omnivores can live and thrive in a wide variety of environments, thanks to their ability to adapt to live in places where prey is abundant. Which areas are suitable for the living of carnivores, and areas where the vegetation cover is abundant; It is the suitable areas for the living of herbivores. [11]