Leaves, needles, flowers, and twigs that fall from trees and shrubs on the shore into the water are the most common food for shredders. Collectors acquire and ingest very small particles of organic matter. They eat the organic matter suspended in the water by catching it with net-like features or other adaptations.

What are the diets of shredders collectors grazers and predators?

The major functional feeding groups are: scrapers (grazers), which consume algae and associated material; shredders, which consume leaf litter or other CPOM, including wood; collectors (gatherers), which collect FPOM from the stream bottom; filterers, which collect FPOM from the water column using a variety of filters; ...

What do the invertebrates that are called shredders eat in streams?

Scrapers may include snails, certain mayfly larvae, and limpets. Shredders feed on leaves, twigs, and other pieces of organic matter that fall into a stream.