| On the other hand, although they are also primarily decomposers associated with soils, certain oribatid mites are herbivorous on living plants. |
| Other types, also harmless, live in soil and leaf litter and are important decomposers. |
| They are the primary degraders of organic matter and plant residues, which are then further degraded by bacteria decomposers. |
| Once an organism has died, be it plant or animal, the phosphorus is returned directly to the soil by the action of decomposers such as bacteria and fungi. |
| These organisms form the important class of decomposers within the food web, without which cellulose would continue to accumulate in the environment. |
| Fungi are some of the most-significant decomposers of plant matter, which makes up the vast majority of detritus in terrestrial environments. |
