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What are the different modes of nutrition and how are they classified?

GeneralClass 12AllAnswered 27 Mar 2026
Answer

Nutrition modes are classified into two main categories based on how organisms obtain food:

  1. Autotrophic Nutrition (Self-feeding) Organisms synthesize their own food from inorganic substances using external energy sources.
  • Photoautotrophs: Use light energy for food synthesis
    • Example: Green plants, algae, and cyanobacteria perform photosynthesis
  • Chemoautotrophs: Use chemical energy from oxidation reactions
    • Example: Nitrosomonas bacteria oxidize ammonia to obtain energy
  1. Heterotrophic Nutrition (Other-feeding) Organisms depend on other organisms for food and cannot synthesize their own.
  • Holozoic: Ingestion of solid food followed by digestion
    • Example: Humans, animals (consume and digest complex food)
  • Saprophytic: Feeding on dead and decaying organic matter
    • Example: Fungi like mushrooms, bacteria
  • Parasitic: Living on or inside another organism (host) and deriving nutrition
    • Example: Tapeworms, Cuscuta (dodder plant)

This classification helps us understand the diverse nutritional strategies organisms have evolved to survive in different environments.

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