Nutrition

Processes whereby an organism procures and process food substances from its external
environment for the continual functioning of its internal metabolism
Food Substances
Any chemical element or compound in the diet that supports maintenance of life processed or normal
production processes (reproduction, growth, lactation)
Autotrophs
Produce complex organic compounds from simple inorganic molecules and energy from light
(photosynthesis) or from inorganic chemical reactions (chemosynthesis)
Primary producers
Plants
Algae
Phytoplankton
Heterotrophs
Consumers (animals, fungi, etc.)
Require food to supply
Chemical-potential energy
Molecular building blocks
Carbohydrates
Essential amino acids
Lipids
Vitamins
Water
Inorganic elements (minerals)
Animal Nutrition
Processes whereby an animal procures and process food substances from its external environment
for the continual functioning of its internal metabolism
What and how much does an individual animal eat?
Central concept in nutrition
Influenced by:
Anatomy/physiology of digestive tract
Foraging behavior
Food abundance
Food quality
Requirements - maintenance, production
Dietary niches (food categories)
Florivore (herbivore)
Eats plant matter
Horse, cattle, goat, sheep
Omnivore
Eats both plant and animal matter
Chicken, swine
Faunivore (carnivore)
Eats animal matter
Dog, cat
Florivore
Food of plant origin