Price, Alex (2012) Omnivorous animals. White Word Publications, Delhi, India. ISBN 9788132341970
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Abstract
Omnivores (from Latin: omni all, everything; vorare to devour) are species that eat both plants and animals as their primary food source. They are opportunistic, general feeders not specifically adapted to eat and digest either meat or plant material primarily. Omnivory has evolved several times among different groups of animals. The first vertebrates were piscivores, then insectivores, carnivores and finally herbivores. A complex set of adaptations was necessary for feeding on highly fibrous plant materials, requiring structural modifications to the teeth, jaws, and digestive tract. Only a small proportion of extant tetrapods are obligate herbivores; many carnivores also consume low-fiber plant material as well as insects and fish, so it could be that early tetrapods made the transition to fully fledged herbivory by way of omnivory. Although the term omnivore literally means eater of everything, omnivores cannot really eat "everything" that other animals eat, they can only eat things that are at least moderately easy to get and still at least moderately nutritious. For example, most of them cannot live by grazing (easy to get, but not nutritious enough), nor can they eat some hard-shelled animals or successfully hunt large or fast prey (nutritious, but too hard to get).
| Item Type: | Book |
|---|---|
| Subjects: | S Agriculture > SF Animal culture |
| Divisions: | Electronic Books |
| Depositing User: | Esam @ Hisham Muhammad |
| Date Deposited: | 02 Jan 2023 02:03 |
| Last Modified: | 02 Jan 2023 02:03 |
| URI: | http://odlsystem2.utm.my/id/eprint/3863 |
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