Guinea Grass And The Mango Tree - 1627 Words

Producers in an ecosystem are typically plants or other autotrophic organisms. The Hot Zone by Richard Preston implies that mango trees and African grasses serve as producers in their respective ecosystems. The mango tree is native to central Africa. Mango trees achieve heights of 90ft and widths of 80ft because of their deep-set roots and stable bases (Wanitprapha). The mango tree belongs to genus Mangifera and the most common mango species is Mangifera indica. The mango is a food source for frugivores, and its soft skin allows many species access to its sugary pulp. Guinea grass is another producer on the African continent. Guinea grass is the favored food for all grazing herbivores that inhabit the African plains. This absolute†¦show more content†¦The wingspan of a megabat can range from 6cm to 1.7m and they weigh up to 3.5lb. Their diet consists of vegetables, nectar, coconut, and mango. Megabats help pollinate flowers by storing pollen on their chests; this is an examp le of interdependency between producers and consumers. Therefore, the fruit bat concomitantly serves an abiotic factor in an ecosystem. In 2007, fruit bats in Gabon were found to be carriers of the deadly Marburg virus (Deadly). This carrier function affects other consumers by potentially killing off a predatory population. The Cape buffalo is another commonly found African consumer. Cape buffalos are the only indigenous bovines to roam the African plains. Cape buffalo are massive creatures; they weigh one ton and stand five feet above the ground (Estes). A Cape buffalo’s diet consists of grass and other vegetation; therefore, they are herbivores. Cape buffalo belong to the genus Syncerus and species S. caffer. The Cape buffalo contributes to the ecosystem by consuming grasses and then converting them into decomposable excrement. The Cape buffalo also servers as potential food for secondary consumers and tertiary consumers. Consumers are vital to an ecosystem because they hel p maintain population equilibrium. Abiotic components serve as the foundations for an ecosystem; they implicitly dictate which types of organisms can inhabit certain environments. Sunlight is an abiotic factor that affects a plant species’ growth and ubiquity. The