Pasture goers

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As grazers refers to animals that mainly feed on plants, while flat pastures graze plants or algae. These include B. cattle , antelopes , ostriches , kangaroos and algae-eating snails , which feed on vegetable food. However, other organisms are also at least partially consumed.

Macrophage grazers

Larger grazers, such as B. Cattle and sheep , feed on grasses and herbs. Grazing is differentiated from grazing. Herbivores that graze, e.g. B. deer , also eat woody branches and leaves from trees and bushes. Sea urchins , which prefer to feed on large, multicellular algae such as members of the Laminariales order , can also be called grazers.

Microphage grazers

Water snails and some aquatic insect larvae eat as phytophagous grazers. They graze unicellular algae, especially diatoms , bacterial mats and, more rarely, red algae . In the middle reaches of rivers ( Rhithral ) they are the most important consumers alongside filter feeders and sediment eaters.

Pasture goers as predators in the broader sense

Since grazers intentionally or unintentionally other animal organisms attack also eat parts of this booty, id usually the prey but not kill, in addition to sheep and z. B. leeches are counted among the grazers. These repeatedly suck up smaller meals of blood from many different vertebrates.

See also

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Dtv Lexikon, Wissen Media Verlag, 2006, Vol. 23, p. 330
  2. a b C. R. Townsend, M. Begon, JL Harper (2009): Ecology . 2nd edition, Springer Verlag
  3. ^ TM Smith, RL Smith (2009): Ecology . 6th updated edition, Pearson Studium, pp. 721–722