Omnivores

Omnivores are a group of animals that are not specialised in their feeding preferences. They will eat virtually anything they can find.

The Eight-armed Seastar, Patriella calcar, will eat algae, small molluscs and crustaceans, as well as the remains of dead animals.

Other animals are scavengers, and eat any debris they can find lying on the shore. Crabs such as the Ghost Crabs, Ocypode cordimanna, of the eastern and northern coasts, and the Burrowing Shore Crab, Leptograpsus octodentatus, of southern shores, amphipods and isopods such as the Marine Slater, Ligia australiensis, Sea Gulls, Larus novaehollandiae, as well as visiting Australian Ravens, Corvus corinoides, will eat the remains of dead animals such as the carcasses of Muttonbirds, and fish, thrown onto the shore by the waves.

References:

Bennett, I. (1987) W. J. Dakin's classic study: Australian Seashores. Angus & Robertson, Sydney.

Davey, K. (1998) A Photographic Guide to Seashore Life of Australia. New Holland, Sydney.

Edgar, G. J. (1997) Australian Marine Life: the plants and animals of temperate waters. Reed Books, Kew.

Quinn, G. P., Wescott, G. C. & Synnot, R. N. (1992) Life on the Rocky Shores of South-eastern Australia: an illustrated field guide. Victorian National Parks Association, Melbourne.

Marine Research Group of Victoria (1984) Coastal Invertebrates of Victoria: an atlas of selected species. Museum of Victoria, Melbourne.

Shepherd, S. A. & Thomas, I. M. (1982) Marine Invertebrates of Victoria, Pt. 1. South Australian Government Printer, Adelaide.

Underwood, A. J. & Chapman, M. G. (1993) Seashores: a beachcomber's guide. New South Wales University Press, Sydney.

Feeding Relationships

Nutrient Absorbers
Grazers & Browsers
Suspension Feeders
Deposit Feeders
Carnivores
Omnivores
Trophic Levels
Energy Pyramid

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