5. Classification of animals based on their diet

Unlike plants, animals cannot prepare food on their own. Animals depend either directly or indirectly on plants for their food. Since animals cannot prepare their own food, animals are called consumers.

 

Different animals eat different kinds of food. Animals are classified into three types based on their food habits. They are:

Herbivores feed directly on plants. They have sharp, cutting incisor teeth in front of their jaws to cut the plant parts. To chew plant parts, they have well developed grinding teeth.

Carnivorous animals:

Carnivores eat the flesh of other animals. They have long, sharp teeth to tear the flesh of other animals.

Omnivorous animals:

Besides the three main types, animals can also be classified as decomposers, scavengers and parasites.

 

Organisms such as earthworms, fungi, beetles and the soil bacteria feed on and decompose the dead and decaying plants and animals. These organisms are called decomposers.

 

 

Some carnivores and omnivores, such as vulture and hyena, feeds on the flesh of dead animals. These are called scavengers. Scavengers helps to maintain the environment clean.

 

 

Certain animals, including mosquitoes, fleas, bugs, leeches and lice suck blood from humans and other animals. Animals like tapeworm and roundworm live inside other animals' body and depend on them for their nutrition. These animals are known as parasites.