Coprophagia: Difference between revisions

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[[File:Millipede.jpg|thumb|right|Some species of Diplopods are obligate coprophages.]]
[[File:Millipede.jpg|600px|thumb|left|Some species of Diplopods are obligate coprophages.]]
== Coprophagia ==
== Coprophagia ==
'''Coprophagia''' or '''Coprophagy''' are terms associated with the act of consuming feces. The word is derivative of the Greek κόπρος (copros), "feces" and φαγεῖν (phagein), "to eat". ''Coprophagy'' comes in many different flavors; ''heterospecifics'' consume the feces of other species, ''allocoprophagy'' is the consumption of the feces of an individual of the same species and ''autocoprophagy'' is the consumption of one's own feces. It is typical of some animal species to eat feces, lagomorphs do so to allow tough plant material to digest more efficiently via two passages through the digestive tract. Other species may eat feces under specific behavioral conditions that are beneficial to the species, its symbiont and the surrounding environment.
'''Coprophagia''' or '''Coprophagy''' are terms associated with the act of consuming feces. The word is derivative of the Greek κόπρος (copros), "feces" and φαγεῖν (phagein), "to eat". ''Coprophagy'' comes in many different flavors; ''heterospecifics'' consume the feces of other species, ''allocoprophagy'' is the consumption of the feces of an individual of the same species and ''autocoprophagy'' is the consumption of one's own feces. It is typical of some animal species to eat feces, lagomorphs do so to allow tough plant material to digest more efficiently via two passages through the digestive tract. Other species may eat feces under specific behavioral conditions that are beneficial to the species, its symbiont and the surrounding environment.
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Coprophagous insects, of the [[Hexapod]] group of the [[Arthropod]] phylum, consume and digest the feces of larger species that have digestive tracts of lesser efficiency when it comes to breaking down nutrients in foods and making them biologically available for further uptake by plants or animals. Some species of flies and Dung Beetles are known to be coprophagic, they feed on the microorganism-rich excrement of other species. A common temporary resident in the soils of temperate deciduous forests, the [[Hawthorn fly]] is plays an important role in leaf litter decomposition and exploits the rich resources in the feces of other soil organisms as another source of food [1]. Some coprophagic earthworms' affinity  for feces enriched soil make them important disseminators of some microbial pathogens such as ''T. gondii'' [2].
Coprophagous insects, of the [[Hexapod]] group of the [[Arthropod]] phylum, consume and digest the feces of larger species that have digestive tracts of lesser efficiency when it comes to breaking down nutrients in foods and making them biologically available for further uptake by plants or animals. Some species of flies and Dung Beetles are known to be coprophagic, they feed on the microorganism-rich excrement of other species. A common temporary resident in the soils of temperate deciduous forests, the [[Hawthorn fly]] is plays an important role in leaf litter decomposition and exploits the rich resources in the feces of other soil organisms as another source of food [1]. Some coprophagic earthworms' affinity  for feces enriched soil make them important disseminators of some microbial pathogens such as ''T. gondii'' [2].


[[File:Psilocybe.jpg|thumb|right|Some ''Psilocybe cubensis'' growing on a pile of dung.]]
== Coprophilous Fungi ==
== Coprophilous Fungi ==
Coprophilous Fungi such as species ''Cheilymenia'' are a type of [[saprobic]] [[ascomycete]] that feed and grow on the animal dung. The spores of this fungi are unwittingly consumed by animals from vegetation, then excreted with the plant matter. The fruiting bodies, or mushrooms, of these fungi can be seen on top of dung piles. What is most interesting is that there exist vast mycelial networks within the dung piles that allow for the succession of the fruiting bodies. [[Psilocybe]], [[''Panaeolus'']], and [[''Coprinus'']] species are also sometimes found growing out of dung and species [3].
Coprophilous Fungi such as species ''Cheilymenia'' are a type of [[saprobic]] [[ascomycete]] that feed and grow on the animal dung. The spores of this fungi are unwittingly consumed by animals from vegetation, then excreted with the plant matter. The fruiting bodies, or mushrooms, of these fungi can be seen on top of dung piles. What is most interesting is that there exist vast mycelial networks within the dung piles that allow for the succession of the fruiting bodies. [[Psilocybe]], [[''Panaeolus'']], and [[''Coprinus'']] species are also sometimes found growing out of dung and species [3].

Revision as of 11:44, 10 April 2019

Some species of Diplopods are obligate coprophages.

Coprophagia

Coprophagia or Coprophagy are terms associated with the act of consuming feces. The word is derivative of the Greek κόπρος (copros), "feces" and φαγεῖν (phagein), "to eat". Coprophagy comes in many different flavors; heterospecifics consume the feces of other species, allocoprophagy is the consumption of the feces of an individual of the same species and autocoprophagy is the consumption of one's own feces. It is typical of some animal species to eat feces, lagomorphs do so to allow tough plant material to digest more efficiently via two passages through the digestive tract. Other species may eat feces under specific behavioral conditions that are beneficial to the species, its symbiont and the surrounding environment.

Invertebrates

Coprophagous insects, of the Hexapod group of the Arthropod phylum, consume and digest the feces of larger species that have digestive tracts of lesser efficiency when it comes to breaking down nutrients in foods and making them biologically available for further uptake by plants or animals. Some species of flies and Dung Beetles are known to be coprophagic, they feed on the microorganism-rich excrement of other species. A common temporary resident in the soils of temperate deciduous forests, the Hawthorn fly is plays an important role in leaf litter decomposition and exploits the rich resources in the feces of other soil organisms as another source of food [1]. Some coprophagic earthworms' affinity for feces enriched soil make them important disseminators of some microbial pathogens such as T. gondii [2].

Some Psilocybe cubensis growing on a pile of dung.

Coprophilous Fungi

Coprophilous Fungi such as species Cheilymenia are a type of saprobic ascomycete that feed and grow on the animal dung. The spores of this fungi are unwittingly consumed by animals from vegetation, then excreted with the plant matter. The fruiting bodies, or mushrooms, of these fungi can be seen on top of dung piles. What is most interesting is that there exist vast mycelial networks within the dung piles that allow for the succession of the fruiting bodies. Psilocybe, ''Panaeolus'', and ''Coprinus'' species are also sometimes found growing out of dung and species [3].


References

1. A. Špaldoňová, The role of soil microfauna in organic matter decomposition and stabilization, (Charles University in Prague: Faculty of Science, 2014), 3.3.

2. S. Bettiol, et al., Earthworms as Paratenic Hosts of Toxoplasmosis in Eastern Barred Bandicoots in Tasmania, (Journal of Wildlife Diseases, 2000), 147.

3. H. Lepp, Dung Fungi, (Information about Australia's Flora: Fungal ecology, 2013).