Botany - Ecosystem Question with Solution | TestHub

Decomposition is one of the most important phenomena which recycles both organic and inorganic raw materials in the ecosystem. The decomposition forms a detritus food chain, which begins with dead and organic matters.

• Detritivores (e.g., earthworm) break down detritus into smaller particles. This process is called fragmentation.
• By the process of leaching, the water soluble inorganic nutrients go deep into the soil horizon and get precipitated as unavailable salts.
• Bacterial and fungal enzymes degrade detritus into simpler inorganic substances. This process is called as catabolism.
• Humification is the accumulation of a dark-coloured amorphous substance called humus which is highly resistant to microbial action and undergoes decomposition at an extremely slow rate.
• The humus is further degraded by some microbes and release of inorganic nutrients occur by the process known as mineralisation.