Towards Quantifying Carrion Biomass in Ecosystems

Citation

Barton PS, Evans MJ, Foster CN, Pechal JL, Bump JK, Quaggiotto M & Benbow ME (2019) Towards Quantifying Carrion Biomass in Ecosystems. Trends in Ecology & Evolution, 34 (10), pp. 950-961. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tree.2019.06.001

Abstract
The decomposition of animal biomass (carrion) contributes to the recycling of energy and nutrients through ecosystems. Whereas the role of plant decomposition in ecosystems is broadly recognised, the significance of carrion to ecosystem functioning remains poorly understood. Quantitative data on carrion biomass are lacking and there is no clear pathway towards improved knowledge in this area. Here, we present a framework to show how quantities derived from individual carcasses can be scaled up using population metrics, allowing for comparisons among ecosystems and other forms of biomass. Our framework facilitates the generation of new data that is critical to building a quantitative understanding of the contribution of carrion to trophic processes and ecosystem stocks and flows.

Keywords
Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics

Journal
Trends in Ecology & Evolution: Volume 34, Issue 10