Teaching Guide to Decomposition
What does decomposition mean?
The breaking down of materials into their most basic parts. A dead leaf is broken down into it’s
most basic elements. These elements help make up new soil.
What would happen if there were no decomposers?
Dead organic material would pile up in the forests and in our communities, never turning into it’s
most basic parts, never turning into soil.
How is composting related to decomposition? (some kids might compost at home or at
school, explaining this process can help them understand decomposition)
Composting at home or at school is a great example of decomposition at work. You take food
and plant scraps and basically put them in a big pile where decomposers can get at them.
Through the digestive work of arthropods, some bacterias and fungus, the food scraps are
broken down into their most basic parts which essentially become new soil. This takes time but
in the end those food scraps turn into great compost that can help grow new plants.
What arthropods are decomposers?
- Millipedes
- Centipedes
- Some beetles
- Some flies
What life stages of arthropods help with decomposition?
All different life stages help. Maggots help break down dead animals by eating flesh and bone.
These maggots eventually turn into flies.
Do all arthropod decomposers eat dead animals?
No, some arthropods only or also eat dead leaf materials. An example of these would be
millipedes.
How do arthropods turn dead animal and plant material into soil?
Arthropods that eat plant matter digest the nutrients in the decaying plant material and the
waste product that comes out when they poop is basically soil. This soil adds up from all the
arthropods at work in the forests and new plants can grow where the old dead plants used to
be.