A Hidden Food Web Exists in The Desert, And It Thrives on Death

Living in an arid region is a precarious business. Harsh conditions make growing tough for plants, meaning every shoot and leaf is all the more precious, even when they're dead and decaying.
A new study conducted at Boolcoomatta Station Reserve in outback South Australia has demonstrated the importance of vegetative leftovers in fueling a desert ecosystem – and revealing an unintuitive alliance between termites and dingoes.
"A lot of research in arid ecosystems has focused on the green food webs that follow 'boom periods' prompted by large rainfall events," says University of New South Wales (UNSW) conservation biologist Mike Letnic.
"These 'boom periods' see spectacular growth and blooming of desert plants and increases in the populations of many animal species that feed on the growth, such as herbivores and rodents. Drier periods are a lot less exciting and consequently have attracted less attention."
But these dry times are important, as they dominate life's existence in arid environments.
A Hidden Food Web Exists in The Desert, And It Thrives on Death